COMMUNITY POLICING—A SHARED RESPONSIBILITY
FINAL PROJECT REPORT AND EVALUATION
A REPORT PREPARED FOR THE DEPARTMENT OF
CANADIAN HERITAGE, MULTICULTURALISM PROGRAM
December 2008
COMMUNITY POLICING—A SHARED RESPONSIBILITY
FINAL PROJECT REPORT AND EVALUATION
Copyright © 2008 by Sulaimon Giwa
The opinions expressed in this publication are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of the Project Steering Committee and/or participating organizations and individuals, except where indicated, the Department of Canadian Heritage or the Government of Canada.
Contents from this publication may not be reproduced for commercial purposes, however, any other reproduction, with acknowledgement, is encouraged. Please credit the source as follows:
Giwa, S. (2008). Community Policing—A Shared Responsibility: Final Project Report and Evaluation. A report prepared for the Department of Canadian Heritage, Multiculturalism Program. Ottawa, ON: South-East Ottawa Community Health Centre.
Correspondence concerning this project, including the Final Project Report and Evaluation may be addressed to: [email protected]
Cover design: Sara Heppner-Waldston
Design layout: Michael Cherun, Cherun Design Inc.
Printed and bound in Canada Acknowledgements
Many people contributed to the success of the Community Policing—A Shared Responsibility project. Their contributions, at various stages, over the past two years, ensured the timely completion of the project. These individuals informed the analyses of project-related activities, which are interwoven throughout this report.
The author would like to thank members of the Project Steering Committee (current and past) for their leadership and guidance, including: Leslie McDiarmid, Executive Director, South–East Ottawa Community Health Centre; Abdirizak Karod, Executive Director, Somali Centre for Family Services; Mark Zarecki, Executive Director, Jewish Family Services of Ottawa; Dr. Karen Schwartz, Professor, School of Social Work, Carleton University; Michael Assivero, past President, Trinidad and Tobago Association of Ottawa; David Pepper, Director, Community Development and Corporate Communications, Ottawa Police Service; Staff Sergeant John Medeiros, Diversity and Race Relations, Ottawa Police Service; Sergeant John Mbakulo, Court Security, Ottawa Police Service; Constable Stephanie Guilbeault, Diversity and Race Relations, Ottawa Police Service; Evalt Lemours, Haitian Community, Coordinator, Groupe Anti- Délinquance En Poésie; and Jocelyn Constant, Haitian Community, Community Organizer.
The author would also like to thank the former Chief of Ottawa Police Service, Vince Bevan, and the Right Honourables Paul Dewar of the New Democratic Party and David McGuinty of the Liberal Party for their opening remarks during the launching and Phase I of the project. Profound appreciation is extended to Dr. Scot Wortley, Associate Professor of Criminology, University of Toronto, and Mr. Neil Edwards, Director, Investigation and Mediation, Ontario Human Rights Commission, for leading the public panel discussion on racism and racial profiling. Appreciation is also extended to Ms. Margaret Parsons, Executive Director, African Canadian Legal Clinic for her contributions to the Knowing Your Rights and Responsibility workshop; Mr. Kevin Lee, Executive Director, Scadding Court Community Centre; Sergeant Mike Laviolette, Professional Standards Section, Ottawa Police Service; Mr. Peter Sterne, Dr. Cheryl Picard, Ms. Rena Ramkay, and Ms. Helen Taylor from the Centre for Conflict Education and Research, Carleton University, for sharing their expertise and skillfully forwarding the police complaints process agenda.
A special thank you to Adrian Harewood, CBC radio host, and Sarah Onyango, Ottawa area community organizer, for moderating Phase I of the project. The project also benefited from the great and timely support of Mr. Bill Westcott and Mr. Cameron Hopgood, Planning, Research and Evaluation, Ottawa Police Service.
ii The active participation and insightful contributions of members from the Somali and Caribbean/West Indies communities as well as rank-and-file police officers are gratefully acknowledged. The Project Steering Committee is indebted to those who generously contributed their time and shared their personal and professional experiences in the dialogue between the police and youth of colour. Police participants from the Ottawa Police Service included: Darren Coyle, Kevin Jacobs, Mark MacMillan, Jason Nadeau, Chris O’Brien, Neil Roy, Marie Josee Seguin, Dave Stewart, and Mannix Velho. Youth participants included: Essa Abidi, Hayder Al-Ebadi, Muhamad Alhasi, Faris Al-Zahrani, Yassar Al- Zubbaydi, Gerald Dragon, Liban Equeh, Nooradih Farah, Ahmed Hussand, Christopher James, Nicholas Lynda, Omar Mao, Farah Mohamed, Julian Walcott, and Yassin Yassin.1
Many thanks to Sara Heppner-Waldston for her patience in listening to the participants’ accounts and graphically recording them in a mural, thereby facilitating the Police/Youth Dialogue. Thank you to participating allied service providers for sharing their expertise and offering suggestions and ideas on improving race relations between the police and ethno-racial minority communities in Ottawa, during the project.
Several other individuals provided broad support to the project and deserve to be mentioned. Special appreciation is extended to: Deborah Conners, Catherine Jenna, Dr. Abdirahman Hilowle, Kelli Tonner, Geeta Grier, Agent Steve Murray, Sûreté du Québec, Angelica Alejandro, Barry George, and Rosanna Majeed.
Finally, the Project Steering Committee acknowledges the financial support of the federal Department of Canadian Heritage, Multiculturalism Program without which this project would not have been possible.
1 Dialogue participants formally consented to the publication of their names in this report.
iii Executive Summary
Between May 2006 and July 2008, the Project Steering Committee (herein referred to as the Committee) for Community Policing—A Shared Responsibility planned and executed a number of key project activities that broadly aimed to enhance civic participation, develop cultural competency, and address systemic racism. This effort was initiated in response to two, highly publicized, racial profiling incidents in 2004 that involved the local police service and members of the Black community in the City of Ottawa. The project focused on fostering relationship building among Ottawa’s multicultural communities and the Ottawa Police Service (OPS). It worked to improve current public perceptions regarding race relations and to address allegations of police discrimination, public disillusionment with the police services, and poor policing accountability. This was achieved through dismantling common stereotypes, increasing community understanding of the police services’ structures and complaints procedures, and increasing accountability for police actions. Additionally, the project contributed to empowerment and power sharing both within and between the OPS and the community.
This report describes the outcomes of the multi-year project and presents its analysis. Throughout the project period, data were collected using both quantitative and qualitative measures. Phase I of the project was a day long conference on racism and racial profiling (December 15, 2006); approximately 50 people attended the event. Responses to evaluation questionnaires indicate that participating community leaders and allied service providers found the conference to be well organized and its presentations meaningful. Respondents noted that useful information was provided, that the conference brought people together, and that the guest presentations were valuable. Other comments suggested that the conference was long and too condensed, that more time for discussion would have been useful, and that more Francophone people should have attended.
Phase II included two activities, the first of which was a workshop on the use of mediation in public complaints against the police. This workshop was conducted at the request of participants in the Phase I conference, and took place on April 13, 2007. The evaluations of this event indicate that the workshop participants acquired considerable knowledge and tools for accessing the police complaints process. Fifty percent of the workshop participants agreed that they had not been well informed about the OPS complaints process before the workshop, and only 10% strongly agreed that they had been well informed. However, 90% of the participants agreed that post-workshop “I now have enough information to help community members access the OPS Complaints Process competently.” Furthermore, 85% agreed that they would now “feel confident filing a complaint with the OPS, personally or on behalf of a community member.” Another 85% of the participants indicated that the workshop met their expectations.
iv The dialogue between front-line police officers and youth of colour formed the second activity of Phase II. The dialogue resulted in the creation of a list of what youth and police would do differently “in a relationship of trust.” The dialogue revealed that the youth and police have different understandings of what the problems are in youth/police interactions. The youth want the problem of racial profiling within policing in Ottawa acknowledged and eliminated. The police officers indicated that they treat all youth in the same manner and that perceptions of unfair treatment are based on a lack of understanding of the “realities of policing.” Among the participants who completed the written exit evaluation, the majority (12 out of 19) agreed that participating in the event was a good use of their time, two participants disagreed, and five were neutral.
An explicit goal of the dialogue was to develop scenarios for use in police training. After the dialogue, however, the Committee recognized that this objective was not feasible within a single meeting. Some relationship building would be required to develop trust in order for two groups with such different viewpoints to be able to work together on such a sensitive task. While scenarios were not developed during the dialogue, exit evaluation results revealed that six participants agreed with the statement that “We now have examples of what goes wrong in police/youth interactions;” five disagreed and eight were neutral.
One of the outcomes of the dialogue was the development of a model for future dialogues based on insights gathered from this activity. Following the dialogue, the Committee discussed the advantages and disadvantages of holding dialogues with the members of existing police/youth initiatives (such as the OPS/Somali Youth Basketball League), building on the previously developed relationships to facilitate the development of scenarios for use in police training. Some noted the danger inherent in this approach, citing the potential for strained relationships within such police/youth groups if youth were to report on their negative perceptions of police conduct. Furthermore, given the divisive nature of racism and racial profiling, how objective would information elicited from youth with ongoing, positive relations with the police be in comparison to those with no police affiliation? Planning for future police/youth dialogue must take these issues into consideration, as they may shape the outcome of such dialogues.
During Phase III of the project, the Committee undertook a project evaluation that encompassed both how well Committee members worked together (process evaluation), and how much progress was made in achieving the project goals (outcome evaluation). This phase also included a follow-up meeting with some of the youth and police participants from Phase II who were available during the post-dialogue period. The follow-up was designed to gather information on the participants’ experiences of the dialogue process and to solicit their feedback on the content of the dialogue report, including a list of recommendations generated from the event; the recommendations were then tabled to the Chief of Police, the Police Executive Services Team, and the Ottawa Police Services Board.
v Project Steering Committee Evaluation and Processes
The Community Policing—A Shared Responsibility project addressed complex societal problems through community-oriented and partnership-based strategies; this effort required the mobilization of the community. The ways in which the Committee came together to form a “mobilized community” around the issue of shared responsibility for community policing are reflected in the Community Mobilization Scorecard.2 The Scorecard provides indicators for three processes that contribute to effective community mobilization: (1) heightened sense of community, (2) enhanced mobilization capacity, and (3) increased readiness for focused action.
Table 1: Indicators Associated with Effective Community Mobilization for Action
Inactive (latent) Community
Sense of Community Mobilization Capacity Readiness for Focused Action Sense of membership Sustained leadership Clarity of goals Mutual importance Formalization Feasibility of plans Shared world views Rewards and incentives Capabilities and resources Bonding/networking Internal and external Citizen participation and communication control Mutual responsibility Community organizational Passion for immediate action know-how Representation Behind-the-scenes High-performance team support function Commitment to diversification
Successful Community Mobilization
2 This version of the Scorecard was adapted from: Kibel, Barry, Ph.D., and Stein-Seroussi, Alan, Ph.D. (1997). Effective community mobilization: Lessons from experience. Centre for Substance Abuse Prevention. DHHS Publication No. (SMA) 97-3131.
vi Heightened Sense of Community
Over the course of the project, Committee members generated a sense of community amongst themselves throughout the various phases. The Committee rated this “Sense of Community” at 72%. The project provided the opportunity for trust to be built between community and police members, trust that did not necessarily exist at the beginning of the process. It also allowed for existing relationships to be strengthened. Community members saw a level of commitment to racial equality on the part of the OPS that exceeded their expectations; however, they continue to have reservations about the amount of change that will result.
Enhanced Mobilization Capacity
The Committee felt that they had the resources, albeit limited, to achieve the job at hand. The Committee rated their “Mobilization Capacity” at 83%. Community members brought their knowledge of community development and of their communities to the table. The Committee considered the leadership of the Project Coordinator and the OPS staff as “terrific;” and that the project activities and meetings were suitably organized. A desire for more project staff time for the Coordinator was noted.
Increased Readiness for Focused Action
The Committee rated their “Readiness for Focused Action” at 74%. The Committee successfully adapted the original proposal in order to create a project that achieved a number of successes. They acknowledged that these adaptations were not fully resolved, as the need to “get moving” took precedence over process issues. Furthermore, there was some variation in the commitment level of members over time. However, the Committee was, in the end, able to focus on short-term gains within the project timeline.
Progress on Project Goals and Outcomes
Each of the seven Committee members completed an evaluation questionnaire designed to gauge their impression of the project in meeting its goals. The questionnaire was divided into two parts: the first section consisted of three items measured on a five-point scale ranging from 1 (“Did Not Achieve”) to 5 (“Excellent Progress”). The second section consisted of six items that were answered qualitatively, to better understand what worked, what did not work, and how future projects could be improved.
The Committee members’ evaluation of the project outcomes generally indicated that the project provided an invaluable opportunity for learning. The successes of the project were more modest than the group had originally hoped, perhaps because the goals were overly ambitious. Committee members noted that the
vii group had hoped the project would result in systemic and cultural changes within the OPS and the community. Such changes were not completely achieved, and, they thought, were not achievable with the limited resources available to the project. However, while the project did not fully meet its goals, a number of significant outcomes were achieved. Among the participating ethno-racial minority communities, there is now knowledge of the existence of a complaints process within the OPS and an understanding of the ways it can be accessed by community members. In addition, the Police/Youth Dialogue holds promise as an activity that provides a unique opportunity for youth of colour to represent themselves, their needs, and their interests directly to the OPS. The Committee hopes to build on the dialogue model developed from this event for future activities.
Organization of This Report
The report is divided into eight chapters, as follows: Chapter 1 provides an introduction to the issues the project addressed, and establishes the context and rationale for the projects’ implementation. Chapter 2 addresses a series of questions the Department of Canadian Heritage, Multiculturalism Program has identified as part of the grants and contributions process. Chapters 3, 4, and 5 present a detailed documentation of the first two phases of the project and their corresponding activities.3 Chapter 6 outlines youths’ recommendations that emerged from the Police/Youth Dialogue, and were tabled to the Chief of Police, the Police Executive Services Team and the Ottawa Police Services Board. Chapter 7, the third and final phase, discusses the Committee’s evaluation of the project. Chapter 8 reflects on the outcomes of the project and provides concluding remarks. The report concludes with a number of important documents that were generated during the project that appear in Appendices I - X. These include a copy of the report submitted to the Ottawa Police Services Board, with recommendation for the endorsement of an ongoing dialogue among front-line police officers and youth of colour by the OPS; interim activity reports; a mid- project activity report; the project work plans; project meeting reports; all planning documents, activity flyers, event agendas, evaluation questionnaires, and project media coverage.
3 The project documentation was thorough and provides a firm basis for future work on the issues of racism and racial profiling among the OPS and communities of colour in Ottawa. A report was created for each activity, which included planning documents, publicity, agendas, notes generated from the events, and participant evaluations. Committee meetings were recorded and documented in meeting minutes (Appendix V). All project documentation including Interim Activity Report(s) (Appendix II) and Final Activity Report for the Fiscal Year 2006-2007 (Appendix III) has been incorporated in this Final Report and Evaluation.
viii Table of Contents
Acknowledgements ii
Executive Summary iv
Organization of This Report viii
Table of Contents ix
List of Tables xiii
List of Figures xiii
Chapter One: Introduction 1
The Ambassador Bar and Grill Incident 3
The Chad Aiken Incident 3
Chapter Two: Responses to Multiculturalism Program Questions 5
Introduction 6
1. Project Activities and Outcomes 6
Phase I 6
Phase II 7
Phase III 8
Changes to Original Proposal 8
Project Participants 9
2. Immediate Results, Indicators and Outcomes 11
Multicultural Community Members and Allied Service Providers 11
Front-Line Ottawa Police Officers and Youth of Colour 12
Project Steering Committee and Ottawa Police Service Leadership 12
Dialogue Model 16
3. Long-Term Impact 18
4. Lessons Learned 19
(i) What the Project Steering Committee Would Do Differently 20
(ii) New Ways of Approaching the Issues 20
(iii) Skills/Capacities Gained 24
ix 5. Budget/Costs 25
6. Dissemination 25
Chapter Three: Racism and Racial Profiling Conference Proceedings 26
Introduction 27
Message from Project Steering Committee 27
Opening Addresses 27
Chief of Ottawa Police Service, Vince Bevan 27
David McGuinty, Liberal MP, Ottawa South 29
Paul Dewar, New Democratic Party MP, Ottawa Centre 32
Public Panel Discussion: Racism and Racial Profiling 34
Discussion 40
Workshop I: Knowing your Rights and Responsibilities 45
Workshop II: Looking at Institutional Change: Complaints Process 50
Workshop III: Experiential Accounts of the Mediation Process 55
Conference/Workshops Evaluation Results 62
Chapter Four: OPS Complaints Process: A Workshop on Mediating Public/ Police Complaints—Implications for Communities of Colour 66
Introduction 67
The OPS Complaints System: Making the Process Work Better 68
Critiques of the Use of Mediation in the Complaints Process 70
Mediation Practice Bias 70
Policy and Practice Incongruity 71
Safeguard Mechanism 72
Workshop Evaluation Questionnaire Results 72
Discussions and Summary 77
Chapter Five: Making Change, Informing Practice, Building Strong Communities: A Roundtable Discussion Between Police and Youth of Colour 79
Introduction 80
x 1. Purpose and Expectation of the Dialogue 81
2. Format of the Dialogue 81
3. Key Themes Arising from the Dialogue 85
Knowledge and Values 85
Expectations and Interactions 88
Hopes and Visions 89
4. Recommendations 91
5. Summary 92
Chapter Six: Youth Recommendations to the Ottawa Police Executive Services Team and the Ottawa Police Services Board 95
Introduction 96
Youths’ Recommendations 96
Chapter Seven: Project Steering Committee Evaluation 98
Introduction 99
Outcome Evaluation 99
1. What Contributed to the Success of the Project Activities? 100
2. What Did We Learn About What Worked and What Did 100 Not Work?
3. What Difference Did It Make That We Did This Work? 101
4. What Could We Have Done Differently? 101
5. What Recommendations Can We Propose for Future Initiatives? 102
Process Evaluation 102
Community Mobilization Scorecard 102
Heightened Sense of Community 103
Enhanced Mobilization Capacity 104
Increased Readiness for Action 104
Summary 105
xi Chapter Eight: Conclusions 106
Appendices 109
Appendix I: 110 Report to Ottawa Police Services Board
Appendix II: 119 Interim Activity Report(s)
Appendix III: 129 Final Activity Report for the Fiscal Year 2006-2007
Appendix IV: 132 Project Work Plans
Appendix V: 136 Project Meeting Minutes
Appendix VI: Phase I 168 Activity Flyer Conference Agenda Evaluation Questionnaire
Appendix VII: Phase II (Part A) 176 Activity Flyer Mediation Workshop Agenda Evaluation Questionnaire
Appendix VIII: Phase II (Part B) 180 Activity Flyer Pre-Dialogue Meeting Agenda for Police Participants Pre-Dialogue Meeting Agenda for Youth Participants Police/Youth Dialogue Agenda for May 31, 2007 Police/Youth Actions Activity Handout Evaluation Form and Results
Appendix IX: Phase III 187 Project Steering Committee Evaluation Questionnaire
Appendix X: 189 Project Media Coverage
About the Author 193
xii List of Tables
Table 1. Indicators Associated with Effective Community Mobilization for Action vi
Table 2. Summary of Project Phases and Activities 10
Table 3. Project Results, Indicators, and Outcomes 14
Table 4. Components of the Model for Police/Youth of Colour Dialogues 17
Table 5. Responses to Statement One on the Evaluation Questionnaire 73
Table 6. Responses to Statement Two on the Evaluation Questionnaire 74
Table 7. Responses to Statement Three on the Evaluation Questionnaire 75
Table 8. Responses to Statement Four on the Evaluation Questionnaire 76
Table 9. Relationship Between Police and Youth of Colour: Youth Perspective 83
Table 10. Relationship Between Police and Youth of Colour: Police Perspective 84
Table 11. Steering Committee Responses to Impact of Project on Stated Goals 99
List of Figures
Figure 1. Model for Police/Youth of Colour Dialogues 16
Figure 2. Breakdown of Respondents’ Responses to Question 1 73
Figure 3. Breakdown of Respondents’ Responses to Question 2 74
Figure 4. Breakdown of Respondents’ Responses to Question 3 75
Figure 5. Breakdown of Respondents’ Responses to Question 4 76
Figure 6. Drawing Clarity from Dialogue: The Participants’ Murals 94
xiii
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Chapter One: Introduction
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- 1 - Introduction
The Community Policing—A Shared Responsibility project was a two-year, federally funded, race relations initiative designed to improve the relationship among the Ottawa Police Service (OPS) and members of ethno-racial minority communities4 in the City of Ottawa. This project builds on the outcomes of the Taking Charge initiative,5 a collaborative effort undertaken by the South-East Ottawa Community Health Centre, the Somali Centre for Family Services, the Jewish Family Services of Ottawa, and the Carleton University School of Social Work.6 In 2001, Taking Charge received funding from the Department of Canadian Heritage for community development, institutional development, and public information sharing. The partners worked closely with the OPS, the Children’s Aid Society, and the Ottawa District School Board to advocate with and on behalf of members of diverse, multicultural communities to:
. Access education and training opportunities relative to their experience, skills and interests in policing, social work, and teaching.
. Reduce barriers to equitable hiring practices within these three institutions.
. Advocate and model an effective process for systemic change and inclusiveness.
The success of Taking Charge is demonstrated most effectively in the increase in the number of job opportunities for members of diverse, multicultural communities to work within these institutions. This success and the solid ties that now exist with the OPS, encouraged the project partners to develop and put forward the idea for the Community Policing—A Shared Responsibility project. This project was developed as a response to two alleged racial profiling incidents that occurred between January and March of 2004 in the City of Ottawa, the
4 The terms “ethno-racial minority communities” and “multicultural minority communities” are used interchangeably throughout this report to denote those groups within the Canadian mosaic that, by virtue of the ethnic and cultural backgrounds of their members, are distinct from the so-called “founding” populations (British, French, and Aboriginal) in accordance with nomenclature employed in contemporary social science.
5 The Taking Charge initiative was conceived in 1999, but received federal funding only in 2001.
6 These partners, together with the OPS and representatives from ethno-racial minority communities, form the Project Steering Committee for the Community Policing—A Shared Responsibility.
- 2 - Ambassador Grill and Chad Aiken cases.7 The project partners were convinced that the partnerships established in the previous project could provide the basis for developing more respectful and trusting relationships among the police service and members of the multicultural minority communities.
The Ambassador Bar and Grill Incident
In January 2004, an unidentified Black man and two White men who were operating a snowplow became involved in a heated confrontation that resulted in an anonymous 9-1-1 call to the OPS. According to news reports that were corroborated by police personnel, the snowplow pulled up behind the Black man’s car as he was exiting a one-lane driveway shared by a neighbouring garage and the Ambassador Bar and Grill restaurant, which was under construction at the time. Both of the drivers refused to give the other right of way. Reports stated that the confrontation subsided after some time, and the parties returned either to the garage or the restaurant; however, the situation intensified shortly after the police arrived on location. The unidentified caller had told the police dispatcher that seven or eight Black men were carrying concealed weapons and that his/her life was being threatened. Upon arriving at the scene, the officer in charge presumably gave the order that everyone in the restaurant be handcuffed. The Black men in the restaurant were arrested and taken to the police holding station, despite lack of evidence of concealed weapons. By all accounts some of the men were released that night, however, the rest were freed with an apology only the following morning. One of the men arrested, Harbi Gabad Mohamoud, who happened to be co-owner of the restaurant, reported that he sustained an injury to his head, resulting from excessive use of force by the police.
The Chad Aiken Incident
In March 2004, an 18-year-old Black youth was pulled over by the OPS while driving his mother’s Mercedes-Benz vehicle. Initially, the youth was reportedly pulled over for driving without a seatbelt, but he was later charged with operating a motor vehicle with a failed license plate light. The driver reported that upon exiting his vehicle to discuss the matter with the police, the arresting officer provoked him and then hit him on the chest. When he requested that the officer provide him with his name and badge number, the officer allegedly responded “666,” the sign of the devil. Partial audio footage of the altercation was caught on the driver’s cell phone, and was made public through the local media. The incident was also reported to have been witnessed by occupants of the driver’s vehicle at the time (friends of the driver). Chad Aiken and his lawyer leveled a police and human rights complaint against the OPS soon after.
7 The names of complainants are used in this report, as the content of their proceedings are public record.
- 3 - At the time of this report, the Director of Community Development and Corporate Communications, OPS, reported that both of these cases are either before the Ontario Human Rights Commission (OHRC) or the Human Rights Tribunal of Ontario (HRTO), at various stages of review. A decision on the Chad Aiken case filed in the Canadian Information Legal Institute (CanLII) database8 corroborates details pertaining to the complaint’s proceedings. Available information suggests that an Interim Decision was made on June 11, 2008 by the HRTO regarding an Ottawa Police Services Board request to hear Chad Aiken’s complaint independently from the complaint of Dimeji Temidire (2005).9 After careful consideration of the facts and following Rule 14, which empowers the HRTO to consolidate and/or recommend separate hearings of the submissions it receives, the HRTO ruled that the cases in question are to be heard together. In so doing, the HRTO hopes to identify systemic issues, which may underpin the complaints, and will make appropriate recommendations to the OPS for action.
During the period of May 2006 to July 2008, the Project Steering Committee (hereafter referred to as the Committee), under the leadership of the Project Coordinator, undertook several activities in response to the Ambassador Grill and Chad Aiken incidents. However, since both cases were still under review, no specific aspect of the incidents was targeted for action. The Committee viewed the cases as a clear call for a better understanding of the police services’ relations with multicultural communities, and the communities’ ability to respond to discrimination and racial profiling.
This report provides a review of the project, including the scope of the project activities that were implemented during the reported period. Moreover, the report is intended as a guide for community organizations and groups, including police services involved in or considering similar initiatives, to build better relations with ethno-racial minority communities, and youth of colour in particular.
Current tensions in police/community relations in the wake of the Montreal police killing of a Honduran teenager in the borough of Montreal North, Quebec, and the alleged police brutality and racial profiling of two Black youth by Halifax Regional and New Glasgow police services in Digby, Nova Scotia highlight the importance of initiatives such as that undertaken in the Community Policing project. The content of this report is very timely and may prove useful to these and other affected communities in their effort to combat racism and racial discrimination in policing and thereby improve police/minority relations in Canada.
8 Aiken and Temidire v. Ottawa Police Services Board, 2008 HRTO 36 (CanLII).
9 Similar to Chad Aiken’s complaint, Dimeji Temidire’s complaints involve two allegations of racial profiling by the OPS. Both incidents occurred in 2005, and the complainant was reportedly stopped on the basis of being a young Black man driving a BMW. A decision on these cases is pending.
- 4 -
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Chapter Two: Responses to Multiculturalism Program Questions
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- 5 - Introduction
This section of the report contains the responses to a set of questions the Department of Canadian Heritage, Multiculturalism Program has identified as important to the grants and contributions process. In submitting this report, the South-East Ottawa Community Health Centre, project lead organization, acknowledges the appropriate use of the public funds entrusted to it by the Department of Canadian Heritage for the said project. The report begins with a review of the project activities and its outcomes.
1. Project Activities and Outcomes
Following the hiring of the Project Coordinator in May 2006, on a part-time basis, a number of changes were recommended and revisions were made to the original project proposal. These changes related to the project’s proposed activities and its goals (see Appendix IV). The changes were necessary to ensure that the proposed project reflect the current reality of the relationship among the Ottawa Police Service (OPS) and ethno-racial minority communities. During the two year gap between the time the original funding proposal was submitted and received approval from the Department of Canadian Heritage, the OPS took commendable steps to improve its relations with communities of colour, and Black communities in particular. Notable among these actions is the strengthening and consistent deployment of Critical Incident and Critical Situation (CI-CS) Teams.10 The primary function of the teams, consisting of trained community and police members, is to diffuse situations—arising between the police and members of ethno-racial and Aboriginal communities—that have racial, cultural or ethnic undertones. The work that the OPS initiated necessitated changes in the project plan, once it was approved for funding, for its outcomes to have significance for police/minority relations. The specific changes made to the project plan will be noted following a review of the project activities planned and executed during the two-year period (2006-2008).
Phase I
On December 15, 2006 the Community Policing—A Shared Responsibility project was officially launched. The launching coincided with Phase I of the project, an all-day conference on racism and racial profiling. The objective of the day was to provide space for members of ethno-racial minority communities (including youth), allied service providers, and the OPS to begin a much needed debate about the perceived issues of racism and racial profiling of people of colour, especially Blacks, by members of the police service. The conference also facilitated discussions on the possible directions that may be taken to address these issues. In addition to a public panel discussion on racism and racial
10 Trained CI-CS community and police members represent the various ethnic, cultural, religious, and linguistic diversity of the City of Ottawa.
- 6 - profiling, three workshops were organized for the day: (1) Knowing Your Rights and Responsibilities, (2) Looking at Institutional Change: Complaints Process and Procedures, and (3) Inclusive Consultations and Advocacy. The final workshop focused on the mediation component of the OPS complaints process; during this workshop, feedback was solicited from participants regarding the utility of an Alternative Dispute Resolution (ADR) approach for resolving public complaints involving the police, particularly where race is concerned. Information gathered during this phase of the project is detailed in Chapter 3.
Phase II
Two different activities were undertaken in the months of April and May 2007. The first activity in Phase II had not been a part of the original or revised project proposal. Following the success of Phase I and the overwhelming number of requests from participants in the conference for an additional information session on the police complaints process, the Committee decided to offer a workshop on this topic despite funding limitations. On April 13, 2007 The Ottawa Police Complaints Process: A Workshop on Mediating Public/Police Complaints— Implications for Communities of Colour was implemented. The objectives of this four-hour workshop were two-fold: (1) to provide an introductory understanding of the goals of mediation and the skills required for its practice; and (2) to generate feedback on participants’ perceived concerns relating to the use of mediation in public complaints against the police. Results of this workshop are detailed in Chapter 4.
The second activity in Phase II took place on May 31, 2007. This unique event, which was part of the revised project plans, brought together front-line police officers and male youth of colour from hard-to-reach, crime-ridden communities in order to facilitate candid discussions about minority youth experiences of racism and racial profiling by members of the OPS. Central to the dialogue was the goal of hearing directly from the participants—particularly the youth—what factors they regard as contributing to negative police/minority relations, what the key problems underpinning the groups strained relationship are, and what type of skills set the police require to improve their interactions with youth of colour. The dialogue empowered the participating youth to speak freely about these issues in their own voice, in contrast to the perspectives of community leaders, the media or public authorities that often dominate such discussions.
The dialogue endeavoured to and was successful in capturing the experiences of the youth and the police participants; however, it only marginally identified specific skill sets that could be employed by the police to achieve better interactions with the minority youth they encountered on the street. Important information gathered from the dialogue, including the participating youths’ recommendations to the police service, are captured in Chapters 5 and 6.
- 7 - Phase III
The third and final project activity was the evaluation of the whole project. Phase III sought to assess the overall project implementation outcomes and the degree of the project’s success. In addition to the analysis of responses to participant evaluation questionnaires collected at various stages of the project, members of the Committee were consulted as well. Under the leadership of a trained facilitator, and using a Community Mobilization Scorecard, the Committee members evaluated the project’s process on three levels: sense of community achieved through the project, mobilization capacity the project demonstrated, and the readiness of the project plans for focused action. The results of this evaluation are presented in Chapter 7.
Changes to the Original Proposal
As mentioned earlier, some changes were made to the original funded proposal11 to ensure the alignment of the planned project activities with the current reality of the relationship between the OPS and multicultural communities. At the start of the project, the following four outcome measures were identified:
1. Ethno-racial community members are better equipped to provide anti- racism training to the police service.
2. Members of multicultural communities are better equipped to deal effectively with complaints and concerns about police services, as a result of the increased capacity of organizations mandated to serve them relative to police policies and procedures.12
3. Allied service providers are better equipped to assist and support members of multicultural communities to understand and file complaints to the OPS.
4. Stronger relationships and more frequent partnerships between multicultural communities and the OPS.
11 It should be noted that modifications to the project proposal were not done without due consideration and process. An official request for change was submitted to the Department of Canadian Heritage and approved prior to their implementation.
12 That is to say that due to the sheer complexity of regulations and limitations involved in police complaints procedures, the more members of the multicultural community educated in these processes the better.
- 8 - Subsequent changes to the proposal reduced the numbers of project deliverables from four to three; the first proposed outcome was eliminated. Given existing tensions among the police and ethno-racial minority communities, as the result, among others, of police insensitivity in their interactions with minority groups, members of the Committee concluded that the timing was unfavourable for the police to receive training from members of multicultural communities, and for those members to provide such training. Rather, it was proposed that both groups engage in joint activities as a way to develop their relationship and build trust that would then facilitate open dialogue for long-term change.
An additional change was made to the project proposal related to a sub- component of Phase III. Initially, the plan was for multicultural community leaders from Phase I to go back to their communities and disseminate/transfer the knowledge acquired from the conference workshops. However, since some of the invitations extended to community leaders went unanswered and considering changes in levels of participation among the community leaders involved in the project, this activity was removed. The Committee proposed that a follow-up intervention with minority youth of colour and police officers from Phase II be carried out instead. This follow-up was considered important to enhance future dialogue structures and processes and to provide the participants with an opportunity to contribute to a recommendation report intended for the three levels of police leadership.
The final changes made to the proposal relate to conducting research. The proposed research was to focus on the identification of police services in Canada that are moving towards the concept of integrated diversity training, and an assessment of the success of these Services in achieving this organizational shift. Although some preliminary work in the form of data collection and analysis occurred, it became apparent that this research would not be completed due to time, human and financial resource limitations. It is recognized that this research would be an important undertaking, with the potential for positive impact on multicultural communities through the identification and removal of barriers to equitable service; however, conditions at the time suggested that the research would be more successful if completed independently of the larger project.
Project Participants
Based on the initial funding proposal submitted to the Department of Canadian Heritage, four community organizations and an academic institution made up the five partner agencies that were involved with the project from start to finish. The partners are as follows: (1) South-East Ottawa Community Health Centre, (2) Somali Centre for Family Services, (3) Jewish Family Services of Ottawa, (4) Ottawa Police Service, and (5) Carleton University School of Social Work. The efforts of these partners were strengthened by the participation of local ethno- racial groups and associations, whose resources and knowledge of the pertinent communities were invaluable to the project. Collectively, under the auspices of
- 9 - the Committee, these partners provided strong leadership and strategic direction that led to the timely completion of all project activities.
Several other individuals participated at various times and in different capacities throughout the project. In particular, allied service providers and members of the Ottawa’s Black community contributed to the public panel discussion on racism and racial profiling (Phase I, December 15, 2006). Fifteen youth of colour took part in the Police/Youth Dialogue on May 31, 2007. Rank-and-file police officers equally contributed to the project most notably during Phase II, both as presenters in the mediation workshop (April 13, 2007) and participants in the Police/Youth Dialogue.
Other participants in the project included academics, legal practitioners, and representatives from the Ontario Human Rights Commission and the African Canadian Legal Clinic, to name a few. These contributors provided both theoretical knowledge and a practical context for the issues the project addressed, namely the impact of racism and racial profiling in policing on ethno- racial minority communities—especially among the most vulnerable—youth of colour.
Table 2: Summary of Project Phases and Activities
DATES ACTIVITIES PLANNED/EXECUTED OUTCOMES
Phase I May, 2006 Creation of Project Steering Committee
Hiring of Project Coordinator
Revision of Project Proposal
Official launch of project December 15, 2006 Conference on Racism and Conference Report Racial Profiling: A Canadian Context
Phase II April 13, 2007 Mediation Workshop Mediation Report
May 31, 2007 Dialogue Between Police and Youth Dialogue Report
of Colour
Phase III October 18, 2007 Follow-up with police dialogue Feedback on Dialogue
participants and Recommendation
Reports November 21, 2007 Follow-up with youth dialogue
participants
April 22, 2008 Meeting with Chief of Police Shared Project Results
May 17, 2008 Project Evaluation with Steering Steering Committee
Committee Evaluation Report
May 20, 2008 Meeting and presentation to the OPS Recommendations Report Executive Team to OPS Executive Team July 28, 2008 Meeting and presentation to the and Police Services Board
Ottawa Police Services Board
August 2008 Summative Project Report and Final Project Report and Evaluation Evaluation
- 10 - 2. Immediate Results, Indicators, and Outcomes
This section reports on the immediate results and outcomes of the Community Policing—A Shared Responsibility project. The project has achieved a number of significant immediate results. Table 3 presents a summary of the results divided into three categories. The first category pertains to the multicultural community members and allied service providers participating in the project; the second, the front-line Ottawa police officers and youth of colour; and the third, the Project Steering Committee and OPS leadership. The immediate results are linked to project activities, and evidence supporting the results are identified for each participating group. One of the major immediate results of the project was the development of a model for future police/youth dialogues. This model is described in detail on page 17, Table 4.
The first group of immediate results pertain to the multicultural community members and allied service providers who were the focus of Phase I of the project, the December 15, 2006 Racism and Racial Profiling Conference. Conference participants’ request for a follow-up workshop led to the presentation of a Mediation Workshop in Phase II of the project, which also focused on this participant group. Five immediate results have been identified from the activities in Phase I and II, based on the workshop reports, participant evaluations, and project evaluation feedback from Committee members. Committee members’ conversations and exchanges with community leaders and allied service providers validated these results. The results identified are as follows:
Individuals who participated have taken the knowledge they acquired back to their communities—feedback has been encouraging, pointing to the importance of knowledge sharing amongst ethno-racial communities.
Increased readiness of ethno-racial minority participants and allied service providers to interact, communicate and work with the police service in improving its relationships with minority youth.
Increased awareness of and willingness to use the OPS complaints process among participants from ethno-racial minority communities, including allied service providers.
Identification of community concerns regarding the use of mediation in the resolution of public complaints against police officers.
Sense of empowerment among ethno-racial minority community participants—feeling of ability to make a difference and have their voices heard.
- 11 - The second group of immediate results pertain to front-line Ottawa police officers and youth of colour who were the focus of a set of associated activities in Phase II, which included the May 31, 2007 Police/Youth Dialogue and the pre- and post- dialogue meetings with youth and police participants. Evidence for the immediate results were found in police and community participant feedback, post-dialogue meetings, Committee members’ conversations with youth and adult community members (including OPS personnel), the dialogue report, and the (youth) recommendations’ report tabled to the police service executive command. The immediate results identified were:
Police participants now have more information about the diverse community needs and the issues youth of colour confront.
Minority youth addressed concerns of racism and of being racially profiled directly with front-line police officers.
Dialogue provided a new experience for youth and police participants, creating opportunities for both groups to begin addressing racially based issues.
The third group of immediate results relates to the experiences of the Project Steering Committee and the OPS leadership. These results relate to the activities in Phase I and II, as well as the meetings that took place between the Steering Committee and the OPS leadership, the project evaluation activities, and media interviews. The results were identified using the Steering Committee evaluation report, the model for police/youth dialogues, statements by the Chief of Police and the OPS leadership, and media clippings. The results are:
The Project Steering Committee developed a model for future police/ youth of colour dialogues.
The project contributed to the development of partnerships and strengthening of networks among participating community organizations and sectors.
Community organizations demonstrated a commitment to listening to, supporting, and advocating on behalf of racialized communities for systemic change in police policies and practices.
The Project Steering Committee now has experience and knowledge that it did not have before.
The OPS demonstrated a commitment to address the issues of racism and racial profiling through its support and leadership role in the project.
- 12 - The OPS, community members, and academic partners worked together to discuss issues of racism and racial profiling, with a view to improving race relations among the police and racialized communities.
OPS personnel engaged in difficult conversations regarding community perceptions of racism and racial profiling within the police force.
Project Steering Committee members received a new commitment from the OPS to acknowledge incidents of racism and racial profiling and to engage in mediation with the community to resolve these issues.
Positive local media coverage of the project brought the issue of racism and racial profiling to wider public attention in Ottawa (see Appendix X).
- 13 - Table 3: Project Results, Indicators, and Outcomes
Immediate Linkage to Evidence/ Results Project Activities Indicators
Individuals who participated in the conference/workshops have taken the knowledge back to their communities— feedback has been encouraging, pointing to the importance of knowledge sharing amongst ethno-racial communities.
Increased readiness of ethno-racial minority participants and allied service providers to interact, communicate, and work with the OPS in improving its relationships with minority youth.
Increased awareness of and willingness to use OPS complaints process, among participants from ethno-racial minority
Allied Service Providers communities.
Identification of community concerns diation Workshop (Phase II, Part A).
Multicultural Community Members & Community Members Multicultural regarding the complaints process.
Sense of empowerment among ethno- racial minority community participants— feeling of ability to make a difference and have voice heard. (Phase I). (Phase of Phase I. evaluations Participant . police on workshop for additional request Participants . process. complaints members. Committee from feedback Project Evaluation . workshops including Conference, Profiling Racial and Racism . . April 13, 2007 Me
Police participants now have more information about the diverse community needs and issues youth of colour confront.
Minority youth addressed concerns of racism and of being racially profiled directly with front-line police officers.
Youth of Colour Dialogue provided a new experience for youth and police participants, creating opportunities for both groups to begin addressing racially based issues.
Front-line Ottawa Police Officers &
Dialogue Police/Youth May 31, 2007 . (Phase II, Part B). and with youth meetings Post-dialogue . police officers. of Dialogue. Report . feedback youth participants Police and . post-dialogue. and during OPS to report (Youth) recommendation . Police Board. Team and Executive
- 14 - Immediate Linkage to Evidence/ Results Project Activities Indicators
Development of a model for future police/ youth of colour dialogues.
Partnerships were developed and network strengthened among participating community organizations and sectors.
Demonstrated commitment of community organizations to listening to, supporting, and advocating on behalf of racialized communities for systemic change in police policies and practices.
p Project Steering Committee now has experience and knowledge that it did not have before.
The OPS demonstrated commitment to the issues through its support and leadership role in the project.
The OPS, community, and academic partners worked together on racism and racial profiling, with view to improving race relations between the police and
Project Steering Committee & racialized communities.
Ottawa Police Service Leadershi Personnel from OPS engaged in and with Steering Committee (Phase III). tolerated uncomfortable conversations meetings. Committee oject Steering regarding perceptions of racism and racial profiling within the police force.
Project Steering Committee members heard a new commitment from the OPS to acknowledge incidents of racism and racial profiling and to mediate with the community to resolve issues.
Positive local media coverage of the project brought the issue of racism and racial profiling to the wider public attention May 17, 2008 Project Evaluation May 17, 2008 Project . in Ottawa. Pr including activities, All project . of Police. Chief Meeting with . Board. Services and Police Team to OPS Executive Services Presentation Meeting and . appearances. television and radio including interviews, Media . Report. Evaluation Steering Committee . dialogues. for police/youth Model Developed . the OPS leadership. Police and of by Chief Statements . is ongoing. Consultation .
- 15 - Dialogue Model
This project facilitated the development of a model for future police/youth of colour dialogues. Although the model is derived from the dialogue that took place in Ottawa, it provides a basis for the design of future such events in other contexts and locations.
The Committee considered the Police/Youth Dialogue to be the most challenging and valuable activity undertaken in the project. Much learning resulted regarding the important components of future dialogues. In Figure 1, a simplified cyclical diagram of the key components of the dialogue model is illustrated. Table 4 provides a more detailed description of each component. The components identified should not be viewed as an exhaustive list, but rather as a set of key elements for consideration in the planning of future police/minority youth dialogues, both within the City of Ottawa and in other jurisdictions.
This model may also be used to improve relationships between the police and other marginalized groups, such as the Aboriginal population in Ottawa and elsewhere. The collaborative, non-confrontational approach of this model corresponds to healing and restorative practices that underpin Indigenous sacred traditions.
Figure 1: Model for Police/Youth of Colour Dialogues
- 16 - Table 4: Components of the Model for Police/Youth of Colour Dialogues Engage a facilitator to co-design and conduct dialogue . Committee, consisting of both police and community representatives, should decide on the competencies of facilitator.
. Involvement of the facilitator from the beginning will
ensure maximum alignment of the project goals with the
design of the dialogue.
Clarify purpose of the dialogue . Concerted effort should be made to limit the number of competing stakeholder priorities, such as those of funding bodies and partner agencies.
Set specific, achievable goals . Keep it simple! A commitment to improving police/minority-youth relations should be the primary motivation and focus of the dialogue.
Recruit youth and police participants . Rely on appropriate, existing, community networks, including police contacts, to reach potential participants.
. Recruit youth with a range of past experiences with the police (including youth with no experience).
Hold pre-dialogue meetings with youth and police . Hold pre-meetings with each group (police and youth) to independently ensure that participants understand and agree with the goals of the dialogue.
. Attendance at pre-meetings should be mandatory for
dialogue participants to ensure commitment of participants
to the goals of the dialogue.
. Support youth (at pre-meetings) in exploring realistic expectations for the outcomes of the dialogue. Youth must understand that systemic outcomes will be long-term. As well, given that some police officers may be on duty at the time of dialogue, youth should be made aware, in advance, that they may appear in full uniform (including guns).
. Support police officers (at pre-meetings) in exploring their response to the implication of this dialogue that youth of colour experience racial profiling. Police participants, both as officers and as adults, are more empowered than the youth. It is essential that they engage with the goal of the dialogue rather than try to “educate” the youth or defend police practice.13
Provide a safe space for dialogue to occur . Establishing a space where the youth and police can share their experiences is crucial to the success of the dialogue. Community mentors and/or leaders can play an important role in this process by encouraging youth to share their stories. If possible, the dialogue should also take place in a neutral location, accessible by youth.
Follow-up with participants after dialogue . Hold a follow-up meeting with each group to gain insight into the experience of the participants and to continue to refine and improve the dialogue structure and process. Evaluate dialogue . Include community participation in the organization, monitoring, and evaluation of dialogue effectiveness.
Integrate police/youth dialogue as an ongoing part of . Engage the police in the dialogue as an integral part of their community development work of the Police Service work. For instance, the police could create an internal expectation that each department host a police/youth of colour dialogue annually, with the goals of informing police training and leveraging community partnerships.
. Encourage joint ownership between the police and community partners.
. Brand the dialogue as an ongoing, continuous activity to build credibility and momentum.
13 The Ottawa experience points to the participating police officers tendency to become defensive regarding any implications of racism or racial profiling.
- 17 - 3. Long-term Impact
The long-term implications of this project are hard to predict, particularly because of the commitment required at the individual, community, and police level to eradicate the problems of racism and racial profiling. There appears to be some momentum in the City of Ottawa, on all three levels of police leadership, for tackling these issues under the diversity banner, the approach to curbing racial profiling must have a clear, long-term focus. However, consistent with research findings in this area, including the Kingston Police Study that was commissioned in 2003,14 this project agrees that ongoing race relations’ efforts by local, provincial, and national police services must include the routine collection of race/ethnicity data. The compilation of race-based statistics by law enforcement agencies would allow for the monitoring, evaluation, and appropriate response to police misconduct in the area of racial profiling in policing. This proposal is only one step in a much needed, integrated approach to the issue, as a proactive measure required to address this form of discrimination.
Currently, the politicized culture of police institutions is in itself a reflection of wider systemic and structural racism embedded in society and within larger public institutions; this culture does not always allow for the transformative action needed for the meaningful resolution of racial profiling. One such action, which is admittedly controversial, would be to change the Police Services Act in the Province of Ontario (as well as in other provinces) to permit the adoption of a zero-tolerance policy on substantiated allegations of racial profiling. This policy would direct police chiefs to terminate the employment of police officer(s) found to have engaged in racial profiling. Presently, there is no national standard in this policy area. Provincial legislatures and the ministries of community safety and correctional services should explore this possibility, as they are responsible for amendments to this act. Increasingly, however, the police services have become more culturally competent, contributing to improvements in police engagement with communities of colour.
Notwithstanding, the adoption of this policy will not entirely prevent future acts of racial discrimination by the police. Its implementation, however, would send a strong message that human rights violations by sworn police officers against members of the public will not be tolerated. In the current context, existing and ongoing partnerships between the OPS and minority communities in Ottawa show some promise. This is evident in ongoing projects such as the Community- Police Action Committee (COMPAC),15 CI-CS, and a number of other race relations’ initiatives involving the police and communities of colour.
14 In Canada, the Kingston Police Service was the first to undertake a racial profiling study, using racially based data collected over a one-year period. The results of this study were released in 2005.
15 COMPAC is a city-wide community-police advisory and coordinating body representing a partnership between police and visible minority and Aboriginal communities in Ottawa.
- 18 - Focusing on the successes of the Community Policing—A Shared Responsibility project and important outcomes from the Committee’s meetings with the Chief of Police, the Police Executive Services Team, and the Ottawa Police Services Board, a possible long-term project outcome may appear in the form of the allocation of police resources for continuing the Police/Youth Dialogue undertaken in Phase II of this project. The goals of the dialogue were not fully realized for a multitude of reasons, including the youths’ fear of reprisal from the police upon return to their communities; at the same time, the dialogue has shown promise for improving communication, trust, and relationship building among front-line police officers and youth of colour, particularly in the areas of racism and racial profiling in policing.
Future dialogues should be developed with a view to supporting the police service and front-line police officers in gaining a better, more holistic understanding of the impact of racial profiling on the psychosocial well-being of youth of colour. Such dialogues have potential implications for police training, practice and policy development. The results of the May 31, 2007 dialogue suggest that further communication between the police and youth of colour are crucial if relations between the groups are to improve.
As its final task the project recommended that the OPS commit to the implementation of an ongoing police/minority youth dialogue, as part of its community engagement practices and 2007-2009 organization Business Plan (see Appendix I). The implementation of these dialogues has the potential to transform the relationship between the police and youth of colour. Maintaining these dialogues, however, will require that the police demonstrate and extend the leadership and initiative it has provided to broader race relations efforts, to minority youth engagement and issues. In this context, the allocation of resources to ensure that such dialogues occur will be an indicator of the police service’s commitment to strengthen its relations with this segment of the community.
Believing that partnership is the cornerstone of any community development effort, the South-East Ottawa Community Health Centre, along with the remaining community project partners, will continue to work with the OPS in forwarding this agenda. Where appropriate, these partners will also participate in the monitoring and evaluation of future activities related to racism and racial profiling, in a community development capacity. It is hoped that this continued collaboration will facilitate an improved quality of life for those directly and/or indirectly impacted by the police practice of racial profiling in Ottawa.
4. Lessons Learned
The lessons learned in this project may be divided into three categories for assessment: (i) what the Committee would do differently given the experience gained in the project, (ii) recommended future approaches to address specific project issues, and (iii) acquired skills and capacities for undertaking future race relations projects.
- 19 - (i) What the Committee would do differently
Resources
It was suggested at the project evaluation meeting that funding to hire a full-time Project Coordinator (rather than the part-time position in this project), would have allowed for a fuller development of the project activities in order to achieve greater impact. Similarly, since the goals of such a project are multifaceted, additional support in the form of a full- and/or part-time Project Assistant is required.
As projects of this nature are often initiated in response to events within a given time period, funding bodies should work towards avoiding delays in the allocation of financial resources. Importantly, effort should be made to ensure that project ideas are not rendered ineffectual by long delays between the event(s) and the submission of a proposal for funding. The implication of this delay is far reaching, especially when the issues are as sensitive as racism and racial profiling.
Goals
Given that the goals of this project were multi-leveled, the corresponding resources did not allow for a comprehensive exploration of the identified issues. In retrospect, the project would have benefited from the identification of, and a focus on, one change effort for a much greater impact on race relations between minority communities and the police.
(ii) New ways of approaching the issues
Approach to Impacting the Training of OPS Officers
It became very clear in the dialogue session and the follow-up debrief, that the police participants did not share the same attitude towards the dialogue as the Committee. The Police/Youth Dialogue was designed as an intervention in a situation where community perceptions of racial profiling and youth resentment of police actions have contributed to tensions in community relations. The three levels of police leadership recognize that racism exists in Canada and that some members of the OPS, as in other Canadian institutions, reflect that racism, however unintentionally. The participating officers, on the other hand, identified these issues as a youth problem and approached the dialogue accordingly. Their goal was to educate the youth on police practice and to let them know that they treat all youth in the same manner. Several officers noted that they had grown up in similar neighbourhoods to the ones that these youths are growing up in, and they knew how the youth felt. Towards the end of the dialogue, a number of officers stated that they “would not be changing their practices” as a result of the session.
- 20 - The post-dialogue debriefing meeting with the officers allowed a more detailed exploration of this point: the officers do not recognize the existence of racism or racial profiling within the OPS. Rather they identified the source of perceptions of racism as a lack of understanding of the realities of policing on the part of the community, and among youth specifically. They do recognize that some officers do not have the skills to avoid or deescalate conflict—that they may habitually or accidentally, “come on too strong;” but they voiced the opinion that any officer who was racist—as evidenced, for example, by going out on a shift with the intention of targeting a particular group in a particular area—would not last long in the police service. The inability to deescalate conflict with youth was identified as a problem relating to high staff turnover, stemming from the retirement boom, and lack of training. The officers who are now coaching new officers have often only been with the Service for two or three years themselves. The level of sophistication in the response required to deescalate a conflict is not always present.
When officers at the debriefing meeting were asked what the facilitator could do to support the dialogue with police officers, one replied, “First off, don’t say that I am racist.” The officers saw the introduction of the term racism as immediately ending any possibility of progress in relations between officers and minority youth within a meeting.
Furthermore, the police often deal with conflicts that are the results of social tensions that have remained unattended for years or decades. For this reason, and because police intervention is a highly visible activity, officers are often accused of behaving inappropriately, and have become used to adopting a defensive position. In this context, engaging officers in a dialogue with youth of colour with the goal of informing police training and practice, would require a significant degree of mutual trust; it was perhaps a lofty goal for a single three- hour session.
The pre-dialogue meeting of the officers with the facilitator and the Project Coordinator was designed to ensure that the officers attending the meeting were aligned with the goal of the event to inform police training and practice; however, the meeting fell short of doing so, in part because a number of officers who attended the dialogue were unable to attend the pre-meeting. In the officers’ debriefing meeting, it was agreed that in any future efforts, attendance at the pre- meeting should be mandatory.
The work of Ruth Frankenberg (1993),16 as reported by Jennifer Harvey (2007),17 can shed light on the officers’ approaches to the problem of racism. Frankenberg suggests three paradigms as operative in public discourse on race:
16 Frankenberg, R. (1993). White women, race matters: The social construction of whiteness. London: Routledge.
- 21 - (1) “essentialist racism” in which racial difference is understood in terms of superior/inferior; (2) “colour-blindness” (the most prominent and “accepted” paradigm), which, in a racist society, necessarily results in colour- and “power-evasiveness” by those who dominate; and (3) “race cognizance,” which recognizes difference and locates inequality in [organizational] structures, not in racial characteristics (the least prominent, but most justice- producing discourse) (Harvey, p. 40).
Frankenberg noted that “colour-blindness” is the most prominent and accepted paradigm. The OPS officers, in espousing this view, in fact represent a positive movement from essentialist thinking to an accepted response. The officers believe that they deal with all youth in the same manner and that this is a positive approach. However, they do not recognize the power structures that the Black youth face each day—power structures that the OPS itself represents. The officers noted that youth often have a “chip on their shoulder;” they expect poor treatment by police and thereby sometimes elicit it. The officers were not willing to examine corresponding stereotypes that they may carry into their interactions with youth, nor were they willing to address their use of power without insisting the youth should change their behaviours as well. In so doing they confirm that they do not operate within a paradigm of “race cognizance.” The examples of behaviours that the officers identified as racist fit into the paradigm of essentialist racism. Their “colour blind” position renders the inequities that reside in the structures of our society, and more specifically, within the OPS, invisible to them. Race cognizance among the officers would allow them to perceive and to articulate the unique relationship of police and youth of colour without feeling that doing so would place them in an untenable position.
Implications
The Committee had hoped that the Police/Youth Dialogue would uncover real life situations that occur among the youth and the police as a way to both inform police training and ensure the integration of youth perspectives into this training. The end goal of this effort was to inspire changes in OPS practice that would result in improved relationships among front-line police officers and youth of colour. After the pre-meeting session with the OPS officers, however, it was clear that the group would not be able to proceed to this point. And indeed, as noted earlier, in the closing round of the dialogue session a number of officers noted that they “did not learn anything” that would cause them to modify their practice. At the same time, implications for police training did emerge from this session. These implications are presented below:
17 Harvey, J. (2007). Whiteness and morality: Pursuing racial justice through reparations and sovereignty. New York: Palgrave Macmillan.
- 22 - 1. The officers’ understand “colour-blindness” to be the best approach in dealing with youth of colour, and the only option that they recognize other than “being racist.” This suggests that officer training should include information on race cognizance as a more justice oriented discourse than “treating everyone the same.”
2. The officers do not support the OPS’s acknowledgement of the need for change. Moreover they appear to see that acknowledgement as a betrayal. Diversity training should therefore include materials that highlight structural racism, and how it unfolds within an organizational context.18 19
3. Much of what happens “on the ground” between police and youth, requires a high degree of skill among the officers. These skills can only be developed through ongoing coaching with experienced and skilled coaches.
Importance of Meetings with the OPS Leadership
The project included three meetings with three levels of leadership within the OPS: the Chief of Police, the Police Executive Services Team, and the Ottawa Police Services Board to present project outcomes and recommendations. While these meetings were not explicitly part of the project plan, they proved to be extremely important in contextualizing the outcomes of the project activities and in gaining further progress on the issues within the OPS. The Chief acknowledges that a number of officers within the OPS reflect cultural norms and biases resulting from growing up in largely segregated communities, and that they may therefore have problems working in diverse communities. He suggested that the OPS leadership must learn not to be defensive when community concerns regarding racial profiling or racism are raised. The Chief distinguished between the practices of individual officers and the organization. He noted that there are officers who practice racial profiling, but he does not agree that the OPS practices racial profiling. Members of the Police Executive Services Team seemed to support this position for the most part; although one member of the team suggested that since sexual harassment is seen as an institutional problem, she did not see why racial profiling could not also be addressed as an institutional problem.
18 See: Bonilla-Silva, E. (2006). Racism without racists: Color-blind racism and the persistence of racial inequality in the United States. New York: Rowman & Littlefield Publishers.
19 See: Harvey, J. (2007). Whiteness and morality: Pursuing racial justice through reparations and sovereignty. New York: Palgrave Macmillan.
- 23 - The OPS’s current approach is to (1) acknowledge incidents of racism and racial profiling and mediate with the community, and (2) educate the OPS officers in order to raise awareness and develop needed skill sets. The explicit goal is to “treat everyone in the same manner.” On the other hand, Committee members argue that there is need to go beyond this approach. They want the OPS to demonstrate an understanding of how systemic discrimination in our society plays out in interactions between officers and citizens, especially youth of colour. The Committee also regard police officers as representatives of the OPS to the public. The distinction between officers and the organization employed by the OPS leadership distances the organization from responsibility for the actions of their officers. This distinction is not accepted by community members represented on the Committee.
The meetings between the OPS leadership and the Committee allowed their distinct understandings and approaches to become very clear. Future work can focus directly on resolving these differing conceptualizations.
(iii) Skills/Capacities Gained
The partners involved in the initiative acquired considerable skills and capacities throughout this project. The ongoing process of working together toward a common goal enhanced Committee members’ capacity for partnership. Community members have a better understanding of the organizational priorities and constraints of the participating groups and have obtained a trustworthy commitment from the organizations to address issues of racism and racial profiling. In addition, Committee members reported having more empathy for the position of the OPS officers when they are on patrol.
The model for police/minority youth dialogue developed through this project is a significant educational resource for future efforts of this nature and represents a new capacity level among the project partners. Follow-up work to this project can build on the model and, in turn, produce more extensive results with less effort.
Community members on the Committee now have an enhanced understanding of and capacity for engaging with the OPS leadership on issues of importance to the community. The reporting structure of the police organization has become more transparent. As well, the OPS leadership have demonstrated their accessibility and commitment to addressing issues of inclusion and diversity. The OPS Business Plan has made the organizational priorities that address these issues explicit, and can now be referenced by community members in their work.
The series of meetings with the OPS leadership have led them to consider implementing the dialogue model. This engagement will support further community and police efforts to address issues of racism and racial profiling.
- 24 - 5. Budget/Costs
The budget for this project was monitored by both the Project Coordinator as well as the South-East Ottawa Community Health Centre Executive Director who oversaw the project. It was managed by the finance department through standard accounting practices using the Accpac system. No additional costs were incurred during the two-year project period. Minor amendments were requested and approved to meet minor changes in budget allocations. Aside from professional in-kind contributions made by the Centre, partners and volunteers there were no additional financial contributions made to this project.
6. Dissemination
The Committee has made explicit efforts to engage the leadership of the OPS with the recommendations that have emerged from this project. Presentations and discussions have been held with the Chief of Police (April 22, 2008), with the OPS Executive Services Team (May 20, 2008), and finally with the Ottawa Police Services Board (July 28, 2008). Discussions have centered on the acceptance and implementation of project recommendations and a request by the Committee that the OPS integrate police/minority youth dialogues into the ongoing community development work of the organization. A presentation was made to the South-East Ottawa Community Health Centre Program Coordination Committee to keep the Committee informed of progress made on the project.
The knowledge gained, results achieved, project learnings, and material developed have been or will be presented at a number of conferences:
11th World Conference, International Institute for Restorative Practices, October 2008, Toronto.
United Way Sharing Our Strengths Conference, June 2008, Ottawa.
Carleton University School of Social Work 2nd Annual Research Day, April 2008, Ottawa.
- 25 -
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Chapter Three: Phase I
Racism and Racial Profiling Conference Proceedings
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- 26 - Introduction
The Phase I of the Community Policing—A Shared Responsibility project was officially launched on December 15, 2006 in Ottawa.20 The conference/event was hosted by the South-East Ottawa Community Health Centre in partnership with the Ottawa Police Service (OPS), Somali Centre for Family Services, Jewish Family Services of Ottawa, and the Carleton University School of Social Work. The impetus for this project, in general, and the conference, in particular, were to bring together multicultural communities, allied service providers, and the OPS to work together to enhance civic participation, develop cultural competency and address systemic racism. Approximately 50 people attended the event. It was marked by all-day educational workshops. Representatives of the City of Ottawa, local and national police services, the education system, the Ministry of Citizenship and Immigration Canada, and local youth-serving agencies were in attendance. Youth of colour were also in attendance, and their participation further attested to the timeliness of the forum and their wish to be civically engage on all matters directly and indirectly relevant to their daily lives.
Message from the Project Steering Committee
On behalf of the Committee, Leslie McDiarmid, then Manager of Health Services at the South-East Ottawa Community Health Centre commemorated the event with a welcome message to all and extended her appreciation to everyone in attendance, including the keynote speakers, the guest presenters and the youth. She went on to provide a brief description of the project and to offer her gratitude to the project partners for their vision and dedication to this initiative. In closing, Leslie encouraged the conference participants to engage actively with the day’s focus, and offered the following inspirational message, setting the tone for the entire conference: “We come together today in the spirit of optimism, commitment and hope, with the intention to create institutions, systems and processes that are equitable, accessible, and meaningful. It will take all of us working together for some time to make that happen, but it is possible.”
Opening Addresses
Chief Vince Bevan:
Chief Bevan of the Ottawa Police Service was one of the three keynote speakers at the conference, alongside the Right Honourables David McGuinty of the Liberal Party and Paul Dewar of the New Democratic Party. Chief Bevan has been a strong supporter of creating opportunities for multicultural communities and the OPS to come together, in the municipality of Ottawa, to build bridges and open dialogue. Chief Bevan led the police force of 1800 officers for seven years, and had recently announced his plan to retire in early 2007. The following is a summary of his presentation.
20 See Appendix VI for conference-related materials, including activity flyer, agenda and evaluation questionnaire.
- 27 - Community Policing
Chief Bevan stated that community policing “is close to [his] heart” and that the spirit of community policing was captured in the title of the project. He described policing in terms of its relationship to the community and highlighted the need for cooperation and trust between both groups in order for the police to carry out their work.
The Chief articulated the following points:
The police cannot do their job without the support and cooperation of the community. However, it is a difficult mandate to prevent and solve crime and be part of the community at the same time.
The authority and privileges of police officers are based upon trust.
To enjoy the complete confidence of the communities, the police must be able to provide service to every one of its members and must understand and work directly with the very communities it is mandated to serve.
Racism and Policing
Chief Bevan acknowledged there is much work to be done to eliminate racism and racial discrimination:
“I can never state strongly enough that racism is a scourge for our community and its continued existence in any form is unacceptable.”
“To create a peaceful and equal environment for all, there must be inclusion, respect, and recognition that some citizens have not always benefited from fair and equal treatment.”21
According to the Chief, the OPS has taken concrete steps to building a legacy of harmonious and positive relationships with the larger community, and communities of colour in particular. Some of the steps the OPS has taken to improve its relationships include:
Committing resources to a groundbreaking outreach recruitment project to become leaders in diversifying the force.
Instituting Critical Incidents—Critical Situation working teams composed of trained community and police volunteers that create a culture of dialogue and openness between police and minority communities during periods of conflict and misunderstanding.
21 Excerpt of the Chief’s speech from December 15, 2006. The complete speech is available through the OPS website, (ottawapolice.ca).
- 28 - Pioneering partnership work that started in 1997 with the creation of COMPAC (the Community Police Action Committee). COMPAC continues to grow and was the recipient of an Ontario Government award for work in the area of race relations and crime prevention.
Future Steps
In addition to the 2007—2009 Business Plan that establishes a long term strategy and training curriculum to integrate anti-racism and diversity principles into OPS courses and training materials—including materials on racially based policing, racial profiling, police stops, strip searches, racial discrimination, and harassment—further specific steps are to be taken to achieve real and measurable progress in the area of police-minority relations, including:
future recruitment campaigns geared towards enhancing diversity;
creation of a respectful workplace program;
expansion of the Critical Incident—Critical Situation teams;
an accountability and corporate excellence program to allow the public complaints process to be more responsive and meaningful for all involved;
a community consortium to develop a community training and diversity project and methodically and systematically modify course and training module to incorporate diversity content. This broad approach is to be consistent with the direction approved for workplace anti-discrimination, anti-harassment and ethics; and
a city wide 100% professionalism and respect campaign based on the simple, but universal, concept of respect and designed to be relevant to front-line police officers and community members.
Chief Bevan concluded that future accomplishments require work in partnership with the community and with organizations mandated to champion the cause of human rights in our society, including existing structures such as COMPAC.
David McGuinty, Liberal MP, Ottawa South:
David McGuinty is the Liberal Member of Parliament for Ottawa South. His perspectives on the issues at hand have been influenced by the time he has spent in 60 countries and his involvement in the criminal justice system as a lawyer. A summary of his speech follows.
- 29 - The Diversity of Canada
David McGuinty emphasized the cultural and ethnic diversity of Canada:
In Canada, about half of the population claims a heritage other than British, French or Canadian.
About 34% of those in Ontario today were not born in Canada, and over half of those living in the Toronto area were not born in Canada.
In the Ottawa South riding, 82 languages and 112 countries of origin have been recorded.
“Canada is perhaps the most diverse nation in the history of humanity.”
Newcomers have been attracted to Canada because of its values of freedom, equality, and tolerance, and its endless opportunities.
Policing and Race
David McGuinty stated that the issues of racial or cultural difference in policing are made more difficult because of the history that surrounds them and the fact that significant racism persists. He argued that everyone must commit to stopping racism and evaluate the kind of community we are building; we must move from bleaker parts of our history to a more fully respectful, equal, rights- based, and true partnership among all of the diverse groups that live here. “There is a commitment; that’s why the Police Chief and officers are here, why you are here.”
David McGuinty reiterated the major findings from a 2003 national forum on policing in a multicultural society, report on strategies, recommendations and best practices.22 They included the following recommendations:
Law enforcement agencies should implement a zero tolerance policy on racism and racial profiling.
Employment equity should be rigorously enforced.
All police members should undergo anti-racism and intercultural training.
Rigorous data collection should be undertaken to record incidents of racial profiling and hate crimes.
An independent civilian oversight mechanism should be established, and supported by communities and law enforcement partnerships.
22 See: http://www.canadianheritage.gc.ca/progs/multi/pubs/police/best_e.pdf
- 30 - A Balanced Approach to Crime
According to David McGuinty perceptions and myths shape views of crime. Statistics Canada has reported that crime rates rose during the 1960s, 1970s and 1980s, and hit a peak in the early 1990s; crime rates have fallen by 22% since then. While property crime has decreased with the strong economy, violent crime is rising and should be taken seriously. David McGuinty stated that there are those who would use these numbers to stir up a frenzy and use being tough on crime as a gimmick. Instead, he recommends:
We should pass bills only where there is evidence that the proposals would make us safer.
We must defend the Charter even when it is difficult.
We should intervene at the junction of substance abuse, mental illness, and crime and troubled youth.
We should not lose sight of the link between poverty and crime.
We must invest in people, in skills development, in the integration of people into the economy so that everyone has a meaningful role to play in society.
The best overarching response to crime avoids division, recriminations, and the expenses of litigation, both in terms of dollars and lost trust. Governments have to believe in these investments.
We need civic participation from multicultural groups, all citizens, children, their teachers, the police, community leaders, lawyers, social workers, etc.
We should raise awareness of tools, such as the complaints process, food banks, and student loans.
To prevent crime it is important to provide economic opportunities. “New immigrants to Canada are having a hard time transitioning successfully into the Canadian economy. Many are getting trapped in cycles of exclusion, poverty, and, in all too many cases, crime.” With 6,000 newcomers arriving in Ottawa every year, initiatives such as the bridging programs at Algonquin College, supported by the provincial government, are important—already 475 people have benefited. Yet, because of the economic spin-offs lost, it was a tragedy that the light rail project did not go ahead.
- 31 - The Community Policing—A Shared Responsibility project should be supported, David McGuinty added. After 35 years of official multiculturalism, much progress has been made, and the participants from the community and the police at the conference can make an important contribution to this important effort.
The project must keep going forward.
The privilege we have, and we should tell children the same thing, can be seen by looking at each other—in other countries you do not see the variation—the greatest gift we have is each other, our common humanity.
The project is also important “because the world is interconnected, because people are moving, because the world is looking to Canada as the pilot project.” Our responsibility is to show the way forward for the planet.
Paul Dewar, New Democratic Party MP, Ottawa Centre:
Paul Dewar is the New Democratic Party (NDP) Member of Parliament for Ottawa Centre. The NDP has been very active in multicultural issues, promoting inclusion and strongly advocating against discrimination.
Community Policing
Paul Dewar looked back at the origins of modern policing, the importance of police being a part of the community, and its dependence upon its support. He raised the following points:
According to Robert Peel, the father of modern policing, “The police are the public and the public are the police.”
The police must secure the willing cooperation of the public in voluntary observation of the law in order to secure and maintain the respect of the public.
The police seek and secure the public’s favour not by catering to public opinion, but by constantly demonstrating absolute impartial service to the law.
Politicians should always direct their actions strictly toward their functions and should never appear to usurp the powers of the judiciary.
The test of police efficacy is the absence of crime and disorder, not the visible actions of the police in dealing with it.
The ability of the police to carry out their duties is dependent upon public approval.
- 32 - Racism in Ontario
Racism has been a problem in Ontario, for Aboriginals, African Canadians, and now Muslims, Paul Dewar noted, and suggested that:
Every young person should read the Report on Race Relations in Ontario, written by Stephen Lewis for the Premier.23
In late 1980s and 1990s, incidents, primarily in Toronto, forced us to confront racism.
We are dealing with what is, fundamentally, anti-Black racism. While every visible minority community experiences the indignities and wounds of systematic discrimination throughout Ontario, it is the Black communities that have been its main victims.
As one member of the urban alliance on race relations said, “the Blacks are out front and we are all lined up behind them.”
Since 9/11, Muslims have also been targets of racism.
Racial Profiling
Paul Dewar stated that racial discrimination by the police tends to occur because of existing racism in the community, and the police are part of the community:
We need to look in the mirror and take inventory of the racial profiling that goes on in our minds, in the prisons we have created there.
Racial profiling has deep roots, for example, the targeting of Jews by Nazi Germany, and others.
It is the collective actions of our society that create the condition that is racial profiling. Many maintain that “we feel threatened by something we do not understand and we think and act in fear and demand that we be protected.” One of the results of this viewpoint, based on total ignorance, was the targeting of Sikh temples by people lashing out at Arab Muslims.
The way forward, Paul Dewar suggested, is to go beyond racism in society and in policing. He recommended that:
23 For copy of the report visit: http://www.geocities.com/capitolhill/6174/lewis.html
- 33 - We need a new story that builds on multiculturalism and strengthens our interdependence through our diversity. This will not be easy and must be done with absolute care, not looking for a melting pot.
Tolerance is not the goal—an awareness of who we are as individuals and as a collective must be our goal.
So that the police are not seen as external agents, we must break down walls so that every citizen is not simply tolerated but respected and truly understood.
We must become active and work for positive change.
Public Panel Discussion: Racism and Racial Profiling: A Canadian Context
The morning public panel discussion included speakers from two distinct sectors, and focused on the themes of Racism and Racial Profiling: A Canadian Context. Guest panelists included Mr. Neil Edwards, Director of Investigation and Mediation, Ontario Human Rights Commission (OHRC) and Dr. Scot Wortley from the Department of Criminology at the University of Toronto. The guests addressed the following questions: What is racial profiling? How pervasive is it? Why does it occur? What impact does it have if people do not trust institutions like the police? What effect does it have on our communities, in general, and minority communities, in particular?
Adrian Harewood moderated the discussion and contributed some thoughts as well. He reminded us of some of the efforts undertaken to fight racism:
About 50 years ago, the year 1956 marked the end of the Montgomery bus boycott in the United States. Prior to that, in 1946, Viola Desmond, a successful entrepreneur in Halifax, Nova Scotia, took a heroic stand against racism. When Desmond went to a movie at the Roseland Theatre, she was required to sit in the balcony section—an area designated for Black patrons. She refused to do so and sat in a seat reserved for Whites only. Desmond was arrested and charged for trespassing and defrauding the state since she had paid for the lower priced balcony seat. She was fined and later sentenced to a prison term of thirty days.
Adrian Harewood added that:
It is very important for people to feel they own the public institutions in society. It is important for people to feel they are connected to their institutions. The police are a fundamental part of our society.
The extent to which we can build a healthy community depends upon those institutions that reflect us.
- 34 - The conference “is about building a healthy community, imagining what kind of community we want to live in, a community in which all of us can participate, a community in which all of us can belong.”
The following are some of the comments the guest panelists made on the subject of racism and racial profiling:
Neil Edwards:
Mr. Neil Edwards is Director of Investigation and Mediation, OHRC. He has worked in the field for about 25 years, with many other organizations, including York University.
Neil Edwards asserted that it is necessary that the police and the community have a common understanding of the existence of racial profiling:
In order to talk about partnerships, it is “implicit that there is some agreement that we know what the terms are, we should have a common understanding.”
Some police services deny racial profiling exists, while the Black communities believe that it exists. There are divergent views regarding the existence of the problem. “How can we have a partnership if there is no common understanding and an acknowledgement that there is a problem?”
Among the police services, only Kingston, and, to some extent Toronto, have acknowledged that racism and racial profiling exists.
Neil Edwards questioned whether the OPS have done enough to acknowledge the existence of racial profiling and discrimination in police work:
Our responsibility, in Ottawa, is to get the police service to acknowledge that the problem exists.
Chief Bevan, in his opening address, stated that the history of relations has not always been just, and if and when the OPS have contributed to such actions, they were wrong.
If this is an apology, it does not go far enough to acknowledge explicitly that the problem exists and that the police have contributed to such injustice.
According to Neil Edwards the problem of racism begins with schools:
- 35 - Under the Safe Schools Act, racialized young men can be expelled from school. The colour of one’s skin immediately comes into play, and not the specific circumstances.
The police are called, and a youth begins to have a criminal record at that point.
For example, two young men, ages 13 and 19, were suspended almost every term, and the police were called each time, leading them to be considered dangerous. Once youth are labeled and enter into the criminal justice system, the rest is history.
Neil Edwards asserted that the experiences of the community as well as his professional experiences confirm that the problem of racial profiling exists. For example, community consultations after the Toronto Star articles24 25 provided evidence for this, as does Edwards’ work at the OHRC, where he sees “the consequences of racialized people: a process by which society constructs races at will, different and unequal in ways that matter to economic, political and social life.” This terminology, i.e., racialized people, he considers preferable to racial minority, visible minority, persons of colour, etc., as it expresses race as a social construct rather than as a description based upon perceived characteristics.
His message to the youth (and others) from the Human Rights Commission is as follows:
You have a right to be free from discrimination, to live here without feeling that colour is a barrier.
You have the right to participate in institutions, to participate equally, to obtain all the benefits of society.
There can be no discrimination because of the colour of your skin.
When there is discrimination, you have the right to file a complaint.
According to Neil Edwards, racial profiling is an issue of great concern to the Human Rights Commission, and should be to all of society. It is an issue that continues to plague the police services and all other public institutions in the country. After the Toronto Star articles of 2002, the Commission thought about how it could assist, and after weeks of talks with racialized communities,
24 See: Small, P. (2002, October 26). Black leaders want a say. Toronto Star, P. B. 01.
25 See: Shephard, M. & Quinn, J. (2002, October 26). Police calls for race relations probe. Toronto Star, P. A. 15.
- 36 - concluded that the phenomenon exists and that the police, security guards, teachers, to name a few, were part of the problem. Acknowledging the problem is the first step in taking responsibility and a necessary condition for engaging in meaningful partnerships.
Dr. Scot Wortley:
Dr. Scot Wortley is a Professor in the Department of Criminology at the University of Toronto. He has worked, for many years, in the areas of police- minority relations in addition to examining the issue of systemic racism in public institutions. Dr. Wortley has led, authored, and co-authored numerous national and provincial projects’, including the Lewis Report, published in the early 1990s, and is currently working on the first national victimization survey in Jamaica. Dr. Wortley uses social science research methods to investigate controversial issues such as racial bias in policing.
According to Dr. Wortley, we all stereotype; however, when allegations of racism and racial profiling by police reach the press, such allegations have, more often than not, been denied by the police.
The 1994 Commission came under attack by the police as having been formed by the “radical NDP” and radical Black groups. Dr. Wortley, therefore, conducted a poll, using the first random sample on the issue in Canada. The sample was stratified (with separate samples of 400 each) by grouping individuals who self- identified as Black, Chinese, or White. In 1994, three quarters of Blacks believed that the police treated Blacks worse than Whites, and at least half of Chinese and Whites agreed with this perception. In a 2006 replication of the study, police bias appeared to have intensified.
Conducting such surveys on racial discrimination has been regarded by some as anti-police, however, other questions in the surveys revealed that large numbers of respondents were supportive of police: 44% of both Blacks and Whites, in 1994, regarded police as “doing a good job of keeping communities safe” (along with 32% of Chinese), and only 10% of Blacks, 9% of Chinese and 6% of Whites felt that they were not doing a good job. These views are complex, and although some may criticize the police as biased, they are not necessarily against the police in general.
In 2000, a survey of young people was carried out, consisting of a random sample of 400 street youth, plus 3,400 high school students, of whom 486 of the 84% who responded were Black. Many Black youth felt that their group was treated worse than others (74%), while significant numbers of South Asians (31%) and other Asians (27%) felt that they were treated worse than others. Half of Black youth reported having been stopped and questioned two or more times in the preceding year, while a quarter of the White youth and only about a tenth
- 37 - of the Asian youth had similar interactions with the police. The patterns were similar for having been stopped and searched.
In survey analysis, it is common to use multivariate techniques to control for other factors known to affect outcomes, such as being stopped by the police. After controlling for social class, leisure activities, drug and alcohol use, gang membership, and criminal behaviour the impact of race on being stopped by the police was stronger.
A pilot study in Kingston, Ontario, was carried out with the cooperation of the police force and analyzed all 16,616 police stops during a one-year period, starting in October, 2003. When compared to proportions in the population (from census data), Blacks and Aboriginals were stopped at much higher rates than other groups. Crime and traffic related stops do not account for the rate differences, so racial profiling may be a viable explanation. The study was carried out in response to community allegations of discrimination.
In spite of science-based evidence of public perceptions as well as media reports, then Chief of the Toronto Police Service, Julian Fantino, Toronto Mayor, Mel Lastman, and the head of the Toronto Police Association (union), Craig Bromell, all maintained that there was no racial profiling.
Many explanations have been offered to offset the idea that racial profiling occurs, as well as to provide alternative explanations of the likely consequences of profiling, such as reduced cooperation with police. One example is the experience of immigrants with police in their countries of origin; however, perceptions of the police are more positive among recent immigrants than among those born and raised in Canada. Other factors may be exposure to American media, including Black Entertainment Television (BET), different socialization, as Whites are told that the police are their friends, and the attitudes of other groups are affected by negative experiences of family or friends with the police.
According to Dr. Wortley, racial profiling exists when:
Members of a particular group are subject to greater criminal justice or institutional surveillance.
Racial characteristics rather than behaviour contribute to surveillance decisions by police, customs, and security guards.
Racial profiling and discrimination may occur:
Because of racial animus, overt stereotypes and hatreds. This may be what police have in mind when they deny the existence of racial profiling.
- 38 - Because it is felt to be justified as efficient policing policy, a justification often used by the media.
Because of subconscious stereotypes that arise, in part, because the police are taught to notice differences and to focus on those who stand out.
Other factors than race, of course, lead to encounters with the police. Asian and South Asian youth, for example, have fewer interactions with the police because they have less leisure activities, especially at night; they often are allowed less freedom than Black or White youth. Gang membership, use of drugs and alcohol, and criminal behaviour lead to being stopped. Black youth in Toronto are more likely to be involved in violence, property crime, and gangs, while White youth are more likely to use drugs and alcohol. Police effectiveness was demonstrated by high rates of stopping youth for (sociologically) deviant behaviour, regardless of race.
However, several studies in Toronto (1994, 2000, 2006) and a study in Kingston (2005) demonstrate that good behaviour is no guarantee for Black youth. Those who did not engage in deviant behaviour were still more likely to be stopped than White youth. Furthermore, higher social class served as less of a protection from being stopped for Black youth than White youth. For example, driving a more expensive car can lead to more stops for Black youth, but not for White youth.
Profiling has many consequences:
Profiling leads to over-representation in the criminal justice system: if Blacks, Aboriginals, or Hispanics engage in crime, they are more likely than Whites to be caught. For example, although the police do not charge or arrest suspects without evidence, White drug dealers elude detection more than Blacks; Whites are recruited by Black gangs to transport drugs, as a result.
Profiling contributes to perceptions of racial bias, not just in relation to the police but also in education, employment, housing, and the courts.
The frequency in which racialized youth are stopped by the police, along with hate crimes, are the two major factors in the perception of Canada as an unjust society.
The more youth perceive society as unjust, the less effort they put into school and their ambitions for professional careers are reduced.
This perception may lead to less cooperation with the police.
- 39 - Perceived injustice in society is seen as a justification for breaking rules elsewhere—institutions not following fair rules are a rationalization for crime.
Living the experience of discrimination results in pain and suffering.
Studies of the police and race reduce racial profiling. For example, the head of the Kingston police union said that the study data was biased, as officers did not stop Blacks during the study. In the long run, awareness can lead to change. Resistance to change declines as new patterns become part of day-to-day activities and routines. Consider for a moment that the use of gun reports were not required before the 1960s and 1970s. Police unions claimed that reporting would compromise their safety and that more officers would die as a result; however, once reporting became routine, research shows that civilian and police officers deaths have both declined.
Discussion:
What are the effects of negative perceptions of the police by racialized communities? (Adrian Harewood):
They diminish trust. For example, those who saw police as a profession, once profiled, they lost confidence in the police and that line of work. (Neil Edwards).
In some disadvantaged housing communities, it is difficult to get people to come forward and cooperate with police. There is a feeling that the police will not protect witnesses. (Scot Wortley).
Victims also think if you live by the sword, you die by the sword. (Neil Edwards).
What would you say to those who say, if they did not engage in such activities, the police would have no reason to survey them? (Adrian Harewood):
Individuals who engage in crime are a tiny minority of each community. General perceptions also depend on how media characterizes crimes: for example, crimes of White serial killers are attributed to individual characteristics, while in the Just Desserts restaurant killing, Blacks were told to control their community and take responsibility. (Scot Wortley).
Do police need to employ racial profiling practices? Is it not one of the instruments that police need to do their jobs? (Adrian Harewood):
- 40 - Studies in the United States of hit rates (finding something wrong), on stops on highways, have found that the success rate of racial profiling is low. Racial profiling may actually be letting people get away with crimes. Profiling is different from having an actual description of a suspect. There is a danger to fishing expeditions. (Scot Wortley).
Regardless, profiling is not legal. (Neil Edwards).
By having these discussions are we stirring the pot, causing more problems than solving? (Adrian Harewood):
It is frustrating to be a researcher in this area. Some people have said “This problem did not exist until you did your research.” The research communicates largely to Whites but not to minorities, because it is their lived experience. Threats were given over the Kingston research, including death threats and threats along the line of “I hope you never need a cop.” (Scot Wortley).
Is this kind of information actually empowering young people, or is it reinforcing the notion, and there are a lot of young people here, that racism is endemic and that they can not escape from it: that by seeing everything through the prism of race, eventually race becomes one’s prison? (Adrian Harewood):
Rightly so, it is our identity, it is always on the radar, not for my White colleagues, but for me, every day race is a factor. (Neil Edwards).
We need to remind people that not much has changed. They need to be informed about interactions they are likely to encounter with the police whenever they are stopped. (Neil Edwards).
Research reflects but does not create reality. What is good is that the issues are being taken seriously, you have politicians here and police are here, you have got community building; this has a positive impact. Shooting down those who complain does more damage. (Scot Wortley).
I do not think trust is what I want people to have. I want them to have healthy skepticism. For example, in the police department, officers are well meaning people, but they are trained to obey authority. The police reflect Canadian law and society. The police are instruments acting as social workers, dealing with family violence, abuse, in addition to terrorism—society is turning everything into policing issues. The police are overwhelmed and do not have the skills of social workers, counsellors, dealing with social issues. In summary, there should be skepticism, and we must take into account that the police are agents of the state and are overwhelmed. (Participant, Jewish Family Services of Ottawa).
- 41 - It is part of a systemic problem. The police are a reflection of society, trained to follow authority, but it is a unique profession and police officers have individual discretion on the street, individual power. We also have to discuss police culture and police stereotyping, which are reflected in the training and screening of who becomes a police officer. No profession is more vulnerable to racial stereotypes than policing. According to studies of social network analysis, people in their personal life tend to stick with their own kind (and not have contact with a wide range of people from other communities). Police officers are often exposed to the worst parts of any community. For example, an African Canadian who became a member of the Toronto Police Service “found out” that White people are crazy, often drug addicts or wife beaters. Until then most of his contacts had been within his own community; he had lived his life as part of a West Indian family and his first wide exposure to Whites was through his new job. The police see sadness, mental illness, they do not get invited to the kitchen table; they do not see the positive parts of any community. Training is needed to address that gap, or screening is needed to find individuals who have that cultural capital. (Scot Wortley).
Did you find any relationship between the Safe Schools Act and racial profiling? (Adrian Harewood):
There is a relationship between the Safe Schools Act and racial profiling. The OHRC itself filed complaint against the Toronto District School Board and the Ministry to establish guidelines for Boards to collect data. There is a great deal of resistance from school boards and from the police. (Neil Edwards).
The new Youth Criminal Justice Act promotes diversion. In Ottawa, less Black youth benefit from this system, but the police are starting now to have contact with minority communities to increase the benefits (Neil Edwards).
Under the Safe Schools Act, was any data collected in Toronto to see how many minority youth are expelled from school? (Participant, Somali Centre for Family Services):
Data collection is crucial. In Canada there is an informal ban on racial criminal justice statistics. After initial efforts, several groups complained that data collection would lead to discrimination in other areas against groups, and data collection was abandoned. Recently, the same groups have said they need statistics to examine issues of racial profiling and racism in the administration of justice. However, the police and educational system have figured out that the ban protects them and they resist collecting such data. Arrest statistics do not prevent stereotyping or racism, because the majority are influenced by media stories, not
- 42 - Statistics Canada and university professors. A study in 2000 showed that 70% of news stories in the Toronto area involving African Canadian individuals were crime related. If the ban did wonderful things for increasing understanding, I would support it, but the ban leads to gross exaggerations. With the ban, a current study shows that 80% of Whites think Blacks commit the vast majority of crime in Toronto, when they commit only 18%. (Scot Wortley).
Adrian Harewood touched on an important issue earlier: What do we want youth to take with them? I do not feel we are empowering them. We should listen to youth first, and then the police should show how they are trying to change. I prefer “trust” to describe what we are trying to develop, because you build on trust. If the police use big words, this may result in lack of shared understanding due to language barriers. We should switch to action, with COMPAC and the Critical Incident—Critical Situation initiative leading the way. We should applaud the youth: “You make me proud, please keep participating to develop better understanding and become champions of change in Ottawa.” “Challenge the police: every time you suffer injustice, bring it to the attention of COMPAC and monitor results.” (Participant, Haitian Community).
You hit on a very sensitive area. There are some good people and good services trying to change systems from within. For example, David McGuinty is working within to make changes to the system. Committees and groups are working with the police service on many fronts, including getting the police to acknowledge that racism exists. The Chief’s agenda is good, but institutions have within them a number of conflicts, and even if some people are working hard for change, other forces are negating their efforts. Therefore, get behind community groups such as COMPAC working with the OPS. We also must take into account the Police Association. (Neil Edwards).
Are you suggesting engaging with the Police Association? (Adrian Harewood):
Strategies have to be broad; strategies can not only include working with the OPS. There are subgroups that are impacting what the OPS is trying to do. We have to understand the effects and power other forces have in negating change. (Neil Edwards).
Research contributes to discussions with community members, especially Whites. There are lots of wonderful programs and initiatives in training and community outreach in police services across Canada; the men and women involved are committed, positive, and want to make change. But we need to continue research to evaluate their efficacy. The criminal justice system does very little evaluation. It needs baseline measures before implementing programs to then evaluate their effects. (Scot Wortley).
- 43 - I thank the police—for the first time I am hearing racism mentioned a number of times. I would like to hear acknowledgement that it exists. The police are not separate from the larger society from which racism originates. It is part of our life here in Canada. We hear we are not as bad as Americans, but having travelled to the United States, the Americans have laws that protect minorities. Here we do not seem to know about employment equity. Bob Rae’s measures were dismantled. People have degrees and drive taxies. I do not expect as a victim to lead solutions. I expect solutions to come from people doing racism—they know how they put systems in place and know how to dismantle them. (Participant, Mental Health Worker).
It is incumbent on the victims of racism to act. We have a legal right and social responsibility to respond to racism or any form of discrimination. In Ontario there is the Human Rights Code. Victims can be part of the solution. You as victims know what happened. If you want the police to be accountable, you must get the police to acknowledge that the problem exists. (Neil Edwards).
Institutions respond to power. When communities become organized, the police will respond, will have to listen. (Neil Edwards).
Anytime there has been change it has started with the community, not only with respect to policing, but any major social change has started with community activism. Civil rights happened when governments were pressured to make changes. When issues are brought up, police services often make an honest attempt to respond, but if there is no community reaction, it is less likely that they are going to take it up, and this applies to any organization. (Scot Wortley).
There are not enough resources to address race and crime in Ottawa. In Toronto, there are large funding opportunities for community organizations to address issues concerning young people, violence, and race. The United Way of Toronto Youth Challenge Fund is a case in point. Where are the resources in Ottawa? There is still one politician here! Also, what do you mean when you say there is a ban on producing statistics around race? (Participant, Youth Counsellor).
We need to address information in the system, as it becomes difficult to conduct surveys if we can not gain access to police or court official data. The data is there; it’s just not public. (Scot Wortley).
Are there a few lessons you would like young people to take with them? (Adrian Harewood):
- 44 - Know your rights when dealing with the police; learn how to speak to the police. There is an unwritten law called “contempt of cop;” if you criticize, yell, etc you are going to be treated more harshly. If you know of someone who has been unfairly treated, go to a community organization or the police to file a complaint. Unless there is a record, it is going to continue. More than knowing your rights exercise your rights. Use the Human Rights Code and the Human Rights Commission—you have access to it via web sites. Read Paying the Price: The Human Cost of Racial Profiling26 on the OHRC website. (Scot Wortley).
Workshop I: Knowing Your Rights and Responsibilities
Margaret Parsons is the Executive Director of the African Canadian Legal Clinic (ACLC). The Clinic was formed in 1994 as a result of youth action, when a police officer was acquitted after shooting an African Canadian youth who was actually cooperating with the police at the time. This acquittal took place the day after the Rodney King verdict in the United States.
The African Canadian Legal Clinic (http://www.aclc.net) has a number of roles:
It supports test cases across Ontario in the areas of racial discrimination and anti-Black racism.
It does law reform work so that, for example, the viewpoints of the African Canadian community are taken into account in relation to revisions to the Ontario Human Rights Code. Another example is the federal crime bill on mandatory minimum sentences, where adoption of this United States approach would most strongly affect African Canadian men and Aboriginals.
The organization is participating in a three-year initiative to meet Black communities across Canada to develop policy agendas and perspectives.
The organization participates in community development, and works with academics who are carrying out relevant studies.
The organization acts as a resource centre for individuals and groups.
The ACLC has participated in various court cases, which have resulted in significant decisions relating to racial discrimination by police:
26 Ontario Human Rights Commission. (2003). Paying the price: The human cost of racial profiling—inquiry report. Toronto.
- 45 - The Court of Appeals of Ontario accepted that there could have been unconscious racial profiling by police, in the case of R. v. Brown; a Toronto Raptor basketball player was targeted as “driving while Black.” It was concluded that, because of the difficulty in proving directly racial profiling, courts can infer profiling based on the circumstances surrounding an event.
The Ontario Superior Court of Justice concluded in R. v. Peck, a case of “walking while Black,” that walking in an area where there may be a lot of drug activity is not grounds for a search if there are no other reasons to suspect a particular individual.
The Supreme Court of Canada has acknowledged the existence of extra scrutiny of African Canadian and Aboriginal people, and has given guidelines that strip and body cavity searches should not be routine.
The Canadian Human Rights Tribunal in Pieters v. Canada Customs and Revenue Agency included as part of its decision that the Agency participate in a race-based pilot project, regarding who is pulled over for questioning and searches at border crossings and airports.
The ACLC’s work also includes efforts in other areas:
Beginning in April 2006, the ACLC started an African Canadian Youth Justice Project, because African Canadian youth have not been gaining access to diversion alternatives that constructively substitute for ordinary criminal court processes. This project began with four youth courts in Toronto to ensure access to diversion and other extra-judicial programs for Black youth, and provision of social workers for youth and their families. Margaret Parsons stated that this project should be expanded throughout the country.
The ACLC has opposed the effects of the Safe Schools Act of 2000 that amended the Education Act. The application of zero tolerance has been discriminatory toward African Canadian students for whom even the slightest infraction can result in expulsion, although for others, such infractions would be dealt with by other means. In one example, a five- year old student in kindergarten went under a table to pick up a crayon for a girl; his teacher yelled at him and wanted him to be expelled as a “sexual predator.” Children are pushed out of school and feel alienated.
The ACLC has worked to provide studies and reports of best practices in various jurisdictions, and reports on education, legislative, systemic and structural change to help build positive relationships with communities, record experiences of youth with racial profiling by police, etc. Titles of report studies include “Crisis Conflict and Accountability,” “In Their Own Voices” and “We are Not Alone.” Ten fact sheets on “Racism and Racial Profiling” are available as well.
- 46 - ACLC wants to improve relationships with the police and other institutions. Those who make recommendations are not anti-police or soft on crime. By exploring the scope of issues of racial profiling and best practices from other jurisdictions, the ACLC supports education, legislation, systemic and cultural change that build positive relationships with communities. Rights and responsibilities must be respected and promoted, and institutions and communities must be held accountable. The court decisions have backed the need to treat people with respect for their dignity and not use assumptions based on stereotypes when deciding to stop people in cars or on foot or to carry out searches.
Margaret Parsons outlined eight mechanisms to improve the situation of cultural groups:
1. Accountability Mechanisms: Anti-racist audits and reviews to encourage self-inspection by the police, identify best practices, enrich police organizations making them stronger and accountable, and ensure consistency in policing by setting high standards and expectations.
2. Data collection: Systematic collection of data to inform discussion among the communities and the police, for transparency and accountability, to ascertain the scope of problems and allay community concerns. Data collection had been opposed in the 1980s when it seemed intended to blame particular groups for crime and to reinforce racial stereotypes; however, it will be supported if it is oriented to finding patterns that identify problems and root causes. The Chief of Kingston Police is respected for supporting data collection.
3. Civilian run complaints process: An arms-length complaints process, as proposed in most reports from the 1960s and 1970s, to build public confidence that is lost when the police are the only ones to investigate the police, and to avoid processes that re-victimize victims and act more as a deterrents to complaints than help.
4. Local dialogue with police: Dialogue is the key to long term solutions, and can improve community policing and proactively identify needs. Dialogue leads to effective partnerships among the police and community organizations, helps identify opportunities to intervene in conflict situations, and improves planning of police and other services.
5. Building community networks: Crisis networks can enable the community and the police to cooperate when crises happen, for example when witnesses and information are needed. Social networks create recreational, social and educational partnerships with other community organizations and services. Inter-community networks between neighbourhoods and cultural communities allow for the sharing of information and planning of strategies about issues that affect local communities.
- 47 - 6. Public and political accountability: Racism awareness and anti-racism training are needed, along with measures to ensure that race-based generalizations are not used to target groups. It is important for the community and the police to have a clear definition of the reasonable and probable grounds for the police to stop, question, or search.
7. Community education and training: Funding is needed to support community organizations in developing their capacity to understand policies and legislative change, to provide services to individuals, to contribute to the training of police and to policing policies, to take a coordinated, action-oriented approach, and to work with other groups and institutions, such as schools.
8. Human Rights Commission and complaints processes: The ACLC has found that using the formal processes results in good individual remedies and important systemic remedies, even if the processes are themselves frustrating. The changes that occur can offset the fear, hopelessness, and frustration that plaques relationships with law enforcement and diminishes the capacity of community members for full civic participation.
During the discussion, it was remarked that although many good things are happening in the community, there is a great deal of under-reported racially- based, discriminatory treatment, especially of youth. At ACLC, service providers work with youth and the community in general to draft complaints. The process of receiving a response from the police (to which they have a right) is empowering for individuals and the communities. It is important for organizations to have the funding and support to take on that role.
Additional items were raised in the discussion:
ACLC will provide support throughout Ontario, and is accessible with a toll-free number. For example, the Clinic is working on racial-profiling incidents that occurred in Ottawa.
Racial profiling is systemic, and needs to be fought as an election issue.
ACLC in its current three-year initiative, working with Black communities across the country, has found that racial profiling continually appears as an issue. The project will result in policy initiatives. ACLC took part in the community coalition after the Toronto Star articles, and has worked with the Human Rights Commission, the police and the courts.
Police can stop drivers and ask for their license and registration, but only with minimal inconvenience to them, unless they have reasonable and probable grounds to do more. Police do not always adhere to this standard and have done strip searches, for example, without grounds for suspicion.
- 48 - There are famous cases of police following individuals, visiting their friends, etc. to the point of harassment, and some individuals have been harassed that way even after making complaints. “We need to let them [the police] know that no matter what, we will go through process, have community support, support of organizations, agencies, and legal representation.”
Margaret Parsons concluded that “It is hard, I hear the frustration every single day, but action has to be an empowering exercise for our communities and our mental health…we can not give up. Change comes when people stand in the face of adversity.”
Anti-Délinquance En Poésie (Groupe ADEP):
Evalt Lemours is a poet and storyteller, who work with an organization that provides services primarily to youth from the Haitian community. This group provides information on how to deal with police, but is oriented towards encouraging behaviour that distances youth from incidents involving the police and leads to satisfying educational, employment, and familial experiences.
The non-profit organization, Anti-Délinquance En Poésie (ADEP), gathers youth in activities in which they can creatively express their problems, viewpoints, and understandings:
There are thematic discussions of situations in which the youth are asked to put themselves into the role of others and decide what to do.
The youth then express themselves and contextualize the discussions through poetry writing and visual art.
There are poetry recitals in churches, schools, community centres, and anywhere young people can be found.
Texts are sung; the youth respond well to hearing texts in the form of songs.
The youth’s work is intended for publication, or is recorded on audio-video CDs or presented on a website.
The ADEP group’s outlook “insists on the strength of words: to prevent, to inform, with the goal of prevention of delinquency, to make youth aware, to raise their consciousness, and to have them be responsible for their actions.” The creative sessions after the discussions aim to improve the quality of the youth’s French written language and their ability to express themselves.
The work of ADEP touches on ideas and concerns important to youth:
- 49 - Issues related to drug sales, threats, shoplifting, rape, violence, street racing, robbery, driving under the influence, stealing PIN numbers, etc.
Intimidation and bullying
Desire for things versus real needs
Using cell phones and computers in a wise way
Coping with stereotypes, bias, unfairness, and provocations
Clothing and jobs
Positive and negative family influences
Taking responsibility for self, family, and society
According to Evalt Lemours, youth often believe they have rights, but no one tells them they have responsibilities toward themselves, toward their family, and their parents, and toward society. At ADEP, “We tell the young there are two roads, high and low, positive and negative. Youth are expected to take responsibility for the consequences of their actions.” Evalt Lemours explained that the organization do the opposite of what parents do: They do not impose anything on the youth by telling them what they are allowed to do; they tell them they have the right to do things, but they have to take responsibility for the choices that they make.
Workshop II: Looking at Institutional Change: Complaints Process and Procedures
Kevin Lee is the Executive Director of Scadding Court Community Centre, a multi-service Centre in downtown Toronto, established in 1978. Among its many services are work with two alternative schools, a gang exiting program, and a program for children of sex trade workers. There are also programs for newcomers to Canada, childcare, crime reduction, recreation, and other programs (see: www.scaddingcourt.org).
Kevin Lee presented information about the Community Education and Access to Police Complaints Demonstration Project (CEAPC). Its goal was to increase community safety by enhancing the relationships among the police and the communities, especially the marginalized communities of low income families, youth, and newcomers.
The CEAPC project started with reports from the social housing project, adjacent to the centre, about the issue of discrimination and racism. A race relations task team was formed, including the superintendent of two local divisions, educators,
- 50 - and other service providers. Issues regarding youth and the police emerged as central, including allegations of police misconduct and the inability of community members to file complaints.
The project encompassed a number of activities:
Focus groups were held across Toronto to explore the police complaints process and access to the complaints system.
Forty community organizations were included as intake partners, and were trained by the police and the Project Coordinator.
These organizations and other groups were included as advocacy partners on, for example, Bill 103 that amends the Police Services Act to provide an Independent Police Review Director and create a modified complaints process.
Education partners worked with police divisions in Toronto to create opportunities for communication and for the police to engage with the project.
An advisory group worked to inform the project.
This pilot project, which ended in 2006, provided useful services:
Capacity was built in many community organizations to provide support for complainants and to help improve relations with the police; many people attended the three-day training sessions on the complaints process and other subjects, such as de-escalation and documentation skills.
Complaints access points were advertised at public libraries and transit facilities.
The partners provided access for an increased number of complaints.
This capacity remained available even after the end of the pilot project and the loss of its staff dedicated to helping with complaints.
Services and brochures were provided in 16 languages. By partnering with community groups, multilingual services that would have been costly were provided inexpensively.
Presentations to the police were carried out at the platoon level in cooperation with the Toronto Professional Standards Section, which believes in effective policing partnerships with the community.
- 51 - Community leaders were brought to divisions to engage in dialogue with front-line officers.
Other police services in Canada and community groups in Hamilton have learned from the project.
The police contributed to training materials for community workers, and used community input for police diversity training.
Community members attended workshops on legal rights around the Youth Criminal Justice Act, how to deal with police, hate crimes, and how to report injustices.
The Toronto Police Professional Standards Section has followed through in its commitment and has developed a website as means of access.
Scadding Court believes that positive relationships between the police and the community lead to safer communities. Enhancing these relationships is achieved through systematic development of understanding the challenges both sides face. The model the CEAPC presents, centres upon funding community groups to provide the services, which lead to an improved relationship of communities with the police and other institutions. The model was evaluated in terms of the services provided and the accomplishments toward promoting a harmonious police-community relationship. (Reports are available on the project web site).
In Ottawa, community organizations and service providers have the infrastructure and language skills to educate the community on policing, on legal rights, and on the complaints system. By training community workers to provide support for individuals, it is possible to bring the communities and the police together for meaningful dialogue.
Scadding Court faces a number of challenges:
Targeting five major hot spots in Toronto for its efforts: It is considered to be a bad idea to focus on just a small number of Toronto neighbourhoods, because the situation in other neighbourhoods without funding has gotten worse.
Maintaining the services demonstrated in the CEAPC project, and helping similar services to be established in Hamilton and other cities.
Bill 103, which modified the complaints process in Ontario and establishes a new position, an Independent Police Review Director. This Bill, which amends the Police Services Act, does not provide full civilian oversight of police issues, and, therefore, does not satisfy the concerns of many cultural communities who experience the effects of racial profiling and discrimination.
- 52 - Professional Standards Section, Ottawa Police Service:
Sergeant Mike Laviolette described the role of the Professional Standards Section of the OPS, and the complaints process, which is part of its responsibilities. Mike Laviolette has been with the OPS for twenty years. The objective of the Professional Standards Section is to maintain quality of service; this is sometimes a challenge because policing is ever evolving. Professional Standards assists with Special Investigations Unit (SIU) investigations, which occur whenever there is a death or serious injury, involving police or someone in custody. The Section also assists the Ontario Civilian Commission on Police Services (OCCPS); it handles damage claims (for example, when the drug unit breaks down doors), and assists in the training of officers and the development of policy.
There are, in addition to public complaints, Chief’s complaints. Chief’s complaints are internal and occur when the Chief or his designate initiate the complaints process if something appears to have been done incorrectly. Professional Standards collects information, compiles a report and submits it to the Chief, who may make a decision or send it to the Police Services Board for a decision. On occasion officers are disciplined, but these investigations are also learning opportunities for training on equipment, procedures, cultural sensitivity, and other training to better equip officers for their work.
Professional Standards carries out investigations under the Police Services Act with the primary objective of conducting fair and transparent investigations. For complaints initiated by the public:
The public has six months from an occurrence to initiate a complaint, but may appeal this to OCCPS.
Professional Standards provide a complainant with a name of an investigator as soon as possible. They emphasize that the complainant is part of the process.
The police consult with the complainant as the investigation unfolds, for example to determine the complainant’s goal in their complaint. In some cases the complainant is satisfied if the officer is made more aware of the importance of the circumstances to the complainant.
The complaint must be in writing and signed by the complainant.
The complaint is stamped with the date of receipt, and the police have six months to complete the investigation.
Some complaints are against policies or service provided, for example, complaints about the absence of an officer capable of speaking French.
- 53 - The majority of complaints are conduct complaints, usually about the conduct of an officer on the street.
Sometimes the complainant does not understand procedures; sometimes the officer does not understand the issues at hand (e.g., mental health, family, etc).
Outcomes depend upon cooperation from both sides, officers must agree to sit down and be open to anything—a simple apology or training—if it is reasonable and agreeable to both sides.
Under the Police Services Act, any sworn member has a duty to cooperate with an investigation.
Usually the complainant identifies the officers in question; otherwise, the Police Service must find them.
A written notice is sent to the officers, with a copy of the complaint.
More often than not, officers are represented by the Police Association, but they must cooperate with investigations.
Any statements made during an investigation are inadmissible in civil proceedings.
The complainant can at any time, withdraw from the process, although the Chief can proceed with a complaint if it appears beneficial.
Complaints can be dealt with informally, using confidential mediation services, if and as long as both the complainant and the officers agree to using these services.
Lawyers, Police Association representatives, and other people can be present to support the complainant or the officer.
The complaints process can result in various outcomes:
Some complaints are not proceeded with. A few complaints are frivolous, vexatious, or in bad faith, with no evidence provided.
Some complaints result in the discipline of an officer. If charges are laid under the Police Services Act, an officer is appointed to proceed with the necessary work.
- 54 - Most complaints do not result in discipline. However, this does not imply the exoneration of an officer, but that a middle ground has been found, without discipline, as usually occurs.
Informal resolutions of complaints must be agreed upon by the officer.
Based on in excess of 140 files, 90% of cases come down to lack of communication—the officer did not explain a process or the complainant did not understand the procedures and reasons for being stopped, etc.
The complaint stays on the officer’s record for only two years, as long as there are no repeat offences.
A complainant or an officer can appeal the result of a complaints process to the OCCPS, the provincial body that oversees policing for Ontario, and can appeal further to divisional court.
Statistics are available in an annual report, accessible through (www.ottawapolice.ca).
Workshop III: Experiential Accounts of the Mediation Process
At the time of the conference, Peter Sterne was Executive Director of the Centre for Conflict Education and Research (CCER) at Carleton University. In collaboration with the OPS and the Ottawa Police Association, the Centre has worked to establish and evaluate a mediation project for the OPS complaints process.
Peter Sterne has been involved in 300-400 mediations in the court system, the government, and the military. He works with the Mediation Centre at Carleton University, where approximately a dozen people are available to conduct mediations. The Centre has been contracted by the OPS to provide mediation for its complaints process.
In general, mediation is a form of assisted negotiation among those who are in conflict. The mediator is impartial and cannot be subpoenaed as a witness in court. The mediation is confidential, and only agreements are communicated or a report that the mediation has not been productive. In many cases, mediation is voluntary. In all cases, the mediator must be impartial, and, through a fair process, balance the conflicted parties who otherwise may have large differences in power.
- 55 - Peter Sterne chose to have a discussion rather than give his prepared presentation.27 Questions discussed included whether mediation would be useful for the police complaints process, the form it should take, and, details on how it could work.
In his experience, Peter Sterne stated, most people usually want some form of justice, not revenge. In many respects people want to know what really happened and why? Was it my fault? Would you do it again if you really knew? Non-mediated processes are often very confrontational, focusing on who did what to whom. They can avalanche into a broader conflict. Non-mediated processes are often shallow and may be unsatisfying for some people, even if they win. There may be poor communication and false assumptions and concepts, instead of clarification.
There are variations in mediation. For example, in Ontario, mediation is obligatory in civil cases. In the police complaints process, there is the question of whether mediation should be voluntary for the officer involved or the complainant.
One of the concerns the participants raised was that in mediation, “as a mediator, you don’t care, the other side is more powerful, I am going to lose and you don’t care.” Peter Sterne replied that the mediator does care about the process, that it is fair, friendly and fast, and serves to balance power. Part of the integrity of the process is in balancing power differences. The vested interest of the negotiator is in helping the parties negotiate a satisfactory outcome. The hope is that people who act in good faith, with the help of a good process manager, can make better decisions than someone imposing a decision who does not know all of the information.
Peter Sterne asked whether mediation should be voluntary for the complainant or the police officer. He explained that the model recommended for police complaints would make mediation voluntary for everyone, including the mediator. If there is an abuse of process, health and safety issues, a criminal act, concealment or delays, the mediator would be able to refuse mediation. The process would follow ethical standards.
A participant asked who pays for mediation. He argued that if it is paid for by the OPS, “I will assume the mediator has a vested interest” in the police. Peter Sterne replied that the taxpayer pays for the mediation service through the OPS,
27 On the day of the conference, Peter Sterne opted to not present his prepared presentation on Workshop III, “Inclusive Consultation and Advocacy.” Instead, he chose to actively engage the participants in a discussion about the police complaints process, with specific focus on experiential accounts of mediation. This discussion generated a lot of interest, resulting in a number of requests for a closer examination of the complaints process, mediation, in particular.
- 56 - and that the University has a vested interest in impartiality—a safety factor. In some models, both parties pay half, as in family law and civil litigation. One of the safeguards of this process is that evaluation forms go to the Mediation Centre at Carleton University. In addition, the model allows either party to reject the mediator, whereas some systems do not allow this.
The participants raised concerns regarding supervision of the mediators, and to whom mediators report. Peter Sterne explained that mediators report to the parties taking part in the mediation, such as the complainant and the police officer(s). The only other report the mediator makes is that the mediation took place and that the process produced, or did not produce, an agreement.
The following are a number of additional points raised during the discussion on mediation:
If the mediation does not work, then the complainant can return to the regular complaints process.
Mediation would be offered by the police as part of the complaints intake process, and the police would provide the complainant with the Carleton University Mediation Centre website and/or contact information.
If mediation is chosen, the normal six-month time limit for the complaints process is set on hold, and is restarted if the mediation fails.
About 80% to 85% of cases are expected to be resolved through mediation, with the rest returning to the standard complaints process.
The complaints process’ six-month time limit can be extended by asking the Chief to apply to the Police Services Board; however, it is preferable to reach resolution quickly so that other complaints can be dealt with.
The average person does not know that they have only six months to launch a complaint. However, if a complaint is late, the complainant will receive a letter stating that s/he can appeal to the OCCPS.
An advantage of mediation is that it allows opportunities for true listening—the police officers know that the process is confidential and that what is said will not reach the Chief or be used in court; this enables them to be open about real reasons, feelings, and logic of their actions.
One of the disadvantages of mediation, due to its confidential nature, is that if institutions or processes are faulty, as in cases of unjust racial profiling, there is no public accountability. At the same time, the institutions that are most open to mediation are usually the ones most likely to make positive changes.
- 57 - The Mediation Centre can capture systematic trends without identifying individuals.
If the same officer is involved in repeated complaints, the Centre will conclude that mediation is an abuse of process and will refuse to conduct mediation as part of its standards of practice.
The Professional Standards Section may recommend mediation even in cases where the officer would be exonerated, if it would help satisfy the complainant or lead the officer to greater awareness in handling similar situations in the future.
Mediations with institutions can be completed in three or four weeks, but six-months may be considered fast under certain circumstances—a cooling period is beneficial, but the parties in conflict can avoid bad feelings and get more sleep if a dispute is resolved quickly.
Mediation can be easier for the officer than a full investigation, and beneficial for the institution, because unresolved problems are costly.
The mediation process can respond to the power imbalance and complainants’ feelings of intimidation by having meetings outside of the police station, having all wear civilian clothes, allowing both sides to bring someone with them, and even carrying out mediations using two separate rooms.
All parties in the mediation are encouraged to tell their own stories rather than have a third party present their stories. Lawyers are briefed to provide only legal advice and leave it to their client to tell their story. It is unlikely to find out much without an open, frank conversation.
If evidence of criminal matters, on either side of the conflict, comes up, the mediation will be terminated, and the mediator has a legal obligation to report suspected criminal activities, such as child abuse.
Mediation is not appropriate if an open, public process is needed, or if there is an abuse of process, or safety or health issues arise during the mediation.
Mediation may be inappropriate if the issue under investigation is related to an injury or an assault.
A hybrid model can be used in which some aspects of a conflict would be dealt with in mediation and others would be referred to the investigation process.
- 58 - Training is needed so that people with complaints and the organizations that support them understand the timelines and the process involved in mediation. Peter Sterne promised that a brochure would be made available with a telephone number to call at Carleton University.
The mediation process will not be used if it is not understood. Community leaders need to explain the process to their constituents, and they must be provided with information in order to carry out this role.
According to Peter Sterne, one must be 18 years old to sign a confidentiality agreement and the minutes of a settlement. However, according to Mike Laviolette, a 16-year-old can be charged with a crime, can file a complaint, and can ask for mediation.
For a younger person, a parent can be involved in the process.
Many people do not complain because of language barriers as well as mistrust of the system. It is important that communications about the complaints process, in mediation and in carrying out investigations, be linguistically augmented.
Those who work with young people find them reluctant to proceed with complaints.
There is information about the complaints process and forms on the OPS website.
Healthy organizations and healthy communities generate complaints.
Members of the community in the audience said that there are underlying issues that make it difficult for community members to express their experiences for fear of backlash; there are common feelings, experiences of hurt, of shame, of poverty. People need support in making legitimate complaints.
Sergeant Mike Laviolette, of the OPS Professional Standards Section, explained that officers in the Professional Standards Section are chosen based on their wide experience and exposure to many kinds of police work; they have a background in investigations and open minds. Within the OPS, the Section is engaged in changing perceptions with open and transparent processes, making clear the intent to resolve problems rather than to “get someone.” However, winning the trust of officers within the OPS can be difficult.
All officers have mandatory training sessions on many subjects, including the complaints process. Diversity training is planned to be included in most, if not all, training sessions. Currently, a course on organized crime, for example, includes
- 59 - attitudes and problems around relationships among the police and Asian communities. In addition, the OPS is diversifying its recruitment and has undertaken initiatives to educate the public on the requirements for becoming a police officer. The OPS recognizes that this is only part of the puzzle, and community leaders and groups are needed to help make the complaints process and relationships with the community work. If people need help, they are welcome to call Mike Laviolette through the police switchboard.
Community leaders want to create a better complaints process for their communities. They often have experienced the same frustrations and faced the same attitudes and barriers as other members of the community; they often feel the same emotions and uncertainty. Community leaders feel the need for information and training to deal with events and the concerns of community members when they arise. Leaders and service providers need recipes to provide the initial advice and take action, and people with whom they can consult.
In summary, a number of recommendations arose from the discussions:
Members of the OPS should be guests on the radio programs of all cultural communities to explain the complaints process, mediation, and areas of cooperation between the police and the community. It is important for the police to be heard in a non-adversarial context.
Similarly, opportunities should be provided to meet police officers at community events and through other avenues, so that the officers who work with the community groups can be introduced and barriers reduced.
Information, including about the complaints process and mediation, should be provided in many languages.
Community leaders and service providers should be invited to training sessions on the complaints process, mediation, and other matters; they are often the initial point of contact for youth with concerns or police complaints. Half-day sessions, at the very least, should be provided.
Community leaders and service providers can help community members learn how to interact with the police to minimize conflict and problems.
Police officers should be encouraged to offer identification even in difficult situations (number or name), to build trust.
Community members should be involved in the creation and delivery of educational programs for police officers.
The discussion about the mediation process indicated that:
- 60 - Mediation should be voluntary.
Safeguards should be put in place to address power imbalances.
More information about the mediation process should be made available.
Carleton University’s Mediation Centre should provide an easily accessible phone number and website.
The standard of mediation practice should be rigorous and include neutrality, impartiality, cultural awareness, and awareness of the OPS.
- 61 - Conference/Workshops Evaluation Results
Overview
This section highlights the results of the evaluation questionnaires that conference participants completed. Participant responses contributed to understanding the problems in police/minority relations and the actions required to improve them. Additionally, this data complemented information gathered from the discussions that took place during the conference. It is important to note that some of the conference participants did not complete an evaluation questionnaire.
Many of the following comments were documented during the conference, in the conference workshops, and in the questionnaires.
Overall, community leaders and other participants:
believe police need more training
want police to have more language capabilities
believe that community members should be involved in designing training for the police and the complaints process
want more workshops to improve their knowledge about police policies and procedures
believe that members of multicultural communities are not well informed about the complaints process and have other issues with the police
want to have workshops for multicultural communities and to use other means of informing community members about the complaints process
feel that the police forces should gather data to analyze possible racial profiling
feel that the police forces tend to deny what seems obvious to many members of multicultural communities in relation to racial profiling
welcomed the December 15, 2006 conference, reported gains in their knowledge of the issues discussed, but found the day too densely packed.
- 62 - The OPS and Multicultural Communities
According to conference participants, multicultural communities should work with the police and take responsibility for improving community policing processes and learning what is needed to achieve this goal.
Participants proposed that police train themselves in following areas:
Cultural sensitivity
Diversity
Community perceptions of police
Economic sensitivity
Trust (through open, transparent processes)
An additional suggestion was that there be a more regular, positive presence of police in the communities. Better community relationships would help prevent crime.
Information about Rights, Responsibilities and the OPS Complaints Process
When asked how well-informed community members, ethno-racial community members in particular, are about the complaints process, community leaders and allied service providers generally responded that they are poorly informed. This was reflected in the responses of other conference participants as well.
Conference participants suggested various means of community education to help develop community members’ understanding of their rights and responsibilities and the complaints process. They agreed that the complaints process should be more visible to the public in general. To aid community members’ use of the complaints system, participants suggested the following:
offering community workshops / information sessions
disseminating information through community leaders, community groups, community gatherings, and media, such as radio programs
describing the complaints process in a clear way, with step by step instructions and in many languages (French was emphasized by some)
building police force facility in many languages.
- 63 - Participants thought that community members should be involved in the design of the complaints system, as well as take part in the process and provide information to those accessing the system.
To build positive relationships among the police and multicultural communities, and to enhance police outreach efforts, conference participants suggested that the police make use of community resources:
“Come to our living room” and inform the community; make use of cultural radio programs, community centres, and community leaders to communicate information to community members.
Perception and Issues with the OPS Complaints Process
Conference participants stated that the Professional Standards Section of the OPS can attempt to make the process accessible and fair, but the process needs community efforts. They raised a number of issues to work on in this regard:
poor knowledge among community members, especially youth, of rights and responsibilities and the complaints process
intimidating aspects of the complaints process and mediation, especially with police in uniform at headquarters
language barriers, both in the communication of information and in the conduct of the complaints process
concerns of backlash from the police towards community members for speaking out; feelings of intimidation among community members, including leaders; and fear of reprisals for making a complaint
community organizations’ and leaders’ capacity to respond to front-line requests for information and help from community members and the police
recognition that healthy organizations and communities have legitimate complaints.
A central underlying theme among the participants’ responses was recognition of the need to build capacity among the leaders and organizations of multicultural communities, to work with the police, facilitate positive community/police relations, and help community members with the complaints process. In order to achieve this goal financial and other resources are required to build and maintain these abilities in addition to the half-day workshops that were suggested.
- 64 - Feedback on the Forum
The event was a success. Many participants showed intense interest in the conference presentations. Questionnaire results showed that it was useful to participants, and the majority of participants reported a high level of knowledge gained.
Positive comments included:
Good information was given.
The meeting brought people together.
The presentations were valuable.
The questionnaire also solicited critical comments, including:
The meeting was long and too packed with information and presentations.
More time for discussions would have been good—the last session involved participants in questions and comments and was praised for that reason.
There could have been more Francophone participants present.
- 65 -
______
Chapter Four: Phase II (Part A)
The Ottawa Police Service Complaints Process: A Workshop on Mediating Public/Police Complaints—Implications for Communities of Colour ______
- 66 - Introduction
On December 15, 2006, the Community Policing—A Shared Responsibility project was launched in concert with Phase I, an all-day conference entitled, Racism and Racial Profiling: A Canadian Context. The conference addressed the following questions: What is racial profiling? How pervasive is the problem in Canada? Why does it occur? What impact, if any, does racism and racial profiling have on ethno-racial minority communities’ perceptions and trust of public institutions, such as the police? What effect does racism and racial profiling have on racialized communities, Black communities in particular?
It was at this conference that the idea for A Workshop on Mediating Public/Police Complaints—Implications for Communities of Colour was born.28 Following a presentation on the Ottawa Police Service (OPS) complaints process, an overwhelming number of participants from multicultural communities and multicultural service providing agencies indicated that they had insufficient knowledge of the mediation component of the Ottawa police complaints process and expressed interest in knowing more about the Service’s mediation program.
On April 13, 2007, the South-East Ottawa Community Health Centre29 hosted a four-hour workshop on the topic of mediation and public complaints, in response to the need identified by conference participants. The workshop provided an overview of the OPS mediation process as well as examined the potential implications of this practice on communities of colour in Ottawa. Guest speakers for the day included Sergeant Mike Laviolette of the OPS Professional Standards Section,30 Dr. Cheryl Picard, Ms. Rena Ramkay, and Ms. Helen Taylor from the Centre for Conflict Education and Research (CCER) at Carleton University.
At the outset of the workshop, Sergeant Laviolette provided a critical review of the investigation component of the OPS complaints process and broadly focused on the advantages and disadvantages of the formal rights-based complaints approach. Dr. Picard, Ms. Ramkay and Ms. Taylor focused on the various aspects of the mediation process. The presenters introduced the mediation process used in OPS civilian complaints; clarified the role CCER plays in the conflict resolution and negotiation process; discussed experiences in civilian
28 See Appendix VII for mediation workshop-related materials, including activity flyer, agenda, evaluation questionnaire and responses.
29 On April 1st, 2008 the South-East Ottawa Centre for a Healthy Community became officially known as South-East Ottawa Community Health Centre. This change ensures that the Centre identifies more clearly with the existing 110 Community Health Centres (CHC) in Ontario communities.
30 The OPS Professional Standards Section is responsible for resolving public complaints against the police service in addition to facilitating the resolution of matters internal to the organization.
- 67 - complaints mediation, particularly around culture; and provided participants with an opportunity to understand mediation more intimately through practical exercises.
Participation in the workshop was limited to 30 people to allow for a meaningful exchange of ideas between the participants and presenters. In total, 22 people attended the session, with representation from members of multicultural communities and multicultural service providing agencies. It is important to note that some of the workshop participants had also participated in the launch and Phase I of the project. Since the workshop had been widely advertised within communities of colour, the organizers were able to reach new members as well. However, with extra time, resources, and the use of further outreach strategies, more community members could have been engaged. This is a significant point for future planning of similar events. Judging by the participants’ responses on the workshop Evaluation Questionnaire, wider public education and engagement is the next logical step.
This chapter is divided into four parts: the first part focuses on current efforts to improve the OPS complaints process and highlights strategic actions the OPS has undertaken to this end; the second part outlines the challenges and critiques workshop participants identified regarding the use of mediation in resolving public/police complaints; the third part delineates statistical data gathered from participants responses to a series of questions in the workshop Evaluation Questionnaire; the fourth and final part provides a discussion and summary of the information gleaned from the workshop.
The OPS Complaints System: Making the Process Work Better
Among those who work with and/or are familiar with the OPS complaints process, most would generally agree that the process in its current form works. Yet, any interpretation of this assessment, implying that there is no room for improvement could not be farther from the truth. In fact, the remarks of members of multicultural communities and allied service providing agencies at the April 13, 2007 workshop attest to this observation; some questioned the efficacy of the current dispute resolution model. Reservations aside, the OPS is working towards making its complaints process more “user-friendly” as part of its ongoing commitment to improve accessibility to members of various communities, ethno- racial minority communities in particular. To support its effort, the following initiatives are currently being implemented, are near completion, or have already been completed:
. The creation of linkages within the police service through the development of the Professional Accountability Corporate Excellence project (PACE).
. The enhancement of ethics frameworks to ground the development of the PACE project through the application and integration of legal risk management and a quality assurance strategy.
- 68 - . The expansion of the use of the mediation-based approach, the Voluntary Conflict Resolution Program, in resolving complaints involving the OPS.31
Certainly, any effort to enhance the administration of the police complaints process as outlined above is laudable. These actions are necessary steps for the OPS to take, particularly in regard to building the trust and confidence of ethno- racial minority communities, given the current relationship between the two groups. Research in this area demonstrates that racialized minority groups are significantly more likely than the majority White population to come into conflict with the criminal justice system and to experience racism and racial profiling by police. If the past is any indication, concerns of racism and racial profiling by police against minority groups will continue into the future, so long as these issues continue to be haphazardly addressed by public authorities. Consequently, Voluntary Conflict Resolution Programs, such as the one being piloted by the OPS may take on greater significance, if practical considerations related to the development of the Program are addressed.
Among workshop participants there was general support for the OPS’ decision to introduce mediation into its complaints process. However, a few participants reported feeling ambivalent about the idea, citing procedural concerns related to the appropriateness of this approach in resolving race-related issues. To address this and related concerns, it was suggested that the police work towards engaging the various communities and multi-stakeholder groups, whose voices often go unheard (i.e., minority youth), in an ongoing consultation.
Such discussions should aim to address the issues of accessibility, transparency, and accountability inherent in the complaints process. This involvement would enable members of the public to develop a deeper understanding of the complaints process and a feeling of ownership of its outcomes. In turn, the police would be better positioned to acquire new knowledge and methods to improve the complaints process, so as to ensure its responsiveness to the needs of the citizens of Ottawa. Caution should be exercised, however, that this effort will not be conceived as an end in itself, but as an ongoing process of sustained dialogue and partnership with the wider community.
In the end, it is hoped that this joint partnership will result in a complaints process that is both flexible to change and dynamic. These modifications are necessary to address the increased diversity of the City of Ottawa, in terms of ethnicity, race and religion, as the population continues to grow.
31 Professional Standards Section. (2007). Ensuring fairness and accountability: 2007 Professional Standards Section Annual Report. Ottawa, ON: Ottawa Police Service.
- 69 - Critiques of the Use of Mediation in the Complaints Process
As part of a larger race relations effort, the workshop on Mediating Public/Police Complaints—Implications for Communities of Colour was designed to empower members of ethno-racial minority communities and multicultural allied service providers through a better understanding the Ottawa police complaints process. Particular attention was given to mediation and its practice within the policing context, as participants from the December 15, 2006 conference identified this area as the least recognizable to them. Accordingly, the aim of the workshop was two-fold:
1. to provide an introductory understanding of the goals and skills of mediation practice; and
2. to engender feedback and/or concerns around the use of mediation in public complaints against police.
The workshop facilitated both platforms to relative degrees of success, as is evident in the participants’ responses to a set of evaluation questions. The following discussion focuses on the latter objective of the workshop. Based on the analysis of the responses gathered in the Evaluation Questionnaires and the discussions that took place during the workshop, participants repeatedly raised seven issues regarding both the formal rights-based complaints process and mediation. On the subject of mediation, among the 20 participants who completed the questionnaire, three recurring themes emerged in relation to the practice of mediation in dispute resolution between police and members of the public:
. Mediation practice bias. Mediation practice was perceived as being potentially biased against racialized individuals/groups and favourable towards the police, as the process is Service-driven.
. Policy and practice incongruity. There is need to address disparities between policy and practice in mediation. Policies may be clear regarding the model of practice, but how mediation is actualized and experienced by parties in a conflict can be quite different.
. Safeguard mechanism. There is need to establish an appropriate mechanism to safeguard against further harm to any one party in a conflict, if the agreement reached does not resolve the parties’ disputes.
Mediation practice bias
Some of the workshop participants had strong reservations about the utility of a mediation-based approach in resolving public/police complaints, especially those relating to racism and racial profiling. During the workshop, it was suggested that
- 70 - feelings of mistrust continue to characterize the relationship between communities of colour and the police, and community members do not perceive mediation as the best choice for resolving such disputes.
Moreover, some of the participants suggested that since the mediation process is Service-driven and does not include input from the wider community—both at the development and implementation stages—transparency is easily compromised as is the notion of police accountability to the public. Implicit in this assertion is the belief that a sense of ownership on the part of the community in the dispute resolution process is lost as a result of the OPS’s exclusion of community groups, and minorities in particular from the process.
Another concern raised relates to the close association between the OPS and the CCER, the Mediation Centre at Carleton University. The CCER was instrumental in helping the OPS to develop its mediation program, and is now responsible for administering the program as well. Although it was suggested that the CCER oversee the program at arms-length, many fear that the prior and ongoing relationship between these two organizations may blur the line of objectivity; this raises suspicion about the police, the mediator’s role and the likelihood of a fair outcome for complainants. According to some participants, the complaints process systematically works in favour of the police and is biased against the community, especially minority communities.
Policy and Practice Incongruity
Among workshop participants, there was a general consensus on the prevalence of disparities between policy and practice in most organizations and public institutions, including the police. Many expressed dissatisfaction with this reality, noting that the OPS mediation program is susceptible to this predicament as well. This observation came in response to the development of the program without participation from the general public and members of historically marginalized groups. Indeed, policies relating to the goals of mediation may be clear in theory, and embody principles of impartiality, fairness, justice, self-determination, and acceptance of the rational problem-solving beings that we are; however, mediation may serve to further oppress those who are meant to be empowered by the process. As one participant noted, “mediation is not for [the] average victim; it might be well intended, but it is not for those who cannot defend themselves.”
Another related concern is associated with the issue of culture in a broad sense and cultural competency in particular. Participants raised the concern that mediators involved in public complaints against the police may not be culturally aware or sensitive to the unique issues ethnic and racial minority groups face; these groups are more likely than the dominant group to come into contact with police for reasons intimately related to social, cultural, political, economic, and linguistic inequities. This perceived lack of awareness and sensitivity, they
- 71 - suggest, may negatively impact a complainant’s experience, both during and after mediation, leaving the matter unresolved. In this context, the predicament of this issue is how to regulate, and match, if at all, the ethnicity of the mediators to those of the disputants? Considering each mediator brings different cultural perspectives, values, and beliefs to the situation, who and what factors should determine which mediator will deal with whom? In cases where the ethnicity of the mediator is different from the disputants, how can we ensure objectivity and bias free mediation?
Safeguard Mechanism
Arguably, one of the advantages of mediation is its ability to allow disputing parties to control the outcome of the situation. Yet, when the process fails to achieve this goal, what becomes of the emotions and information revealed during the mediation process? In other words, how can mediators safeguard parties in a conflict from being further harmed by the process when the agreement reached does not resolve the dispute? For participants at the workshop, these questions are more than academic in nature. There are substantive and theoretical ambiguities in mediation regulatory framework practices, as well as the practicality of mediation in resolving complex, emotional, and often difficult situations involving race. While the OPS complaints process allows complainants to withdraw from mediation at any point and pursue resolution through the formal rights-based complaints process (i.e., investigation), participants also expressed concern at the idea of police investigating police. The police were perceived as insufficiently impartial to examine and render a fair decision on a public complaint involving one of their own. No clear consensus emerged on the type of strategies required to mitigate their concerns, however, it was apparent that the participants believe an appropriate mechanism should be developed to protect complainants from further harm when the process fails to achieve resolution.
Workshop Evaluation Questionnaire Results
Of the 22 participants who attended the workshop, 20 completed an Evaluation Questionnaire. This section presents the workshop participants’ responses to four statements (questions 1-4 in the Evaluation Questionnaire) on a scale of 1 (“strongly agree”) to 5 (“strongly disagree”):
1. “Before I came to this meeting, I was well informed about the Ottawa Police Service Complaints Process.”
2. “Now, I have enough information to help community members access the Ottawa Police Service Complaints Process competently.”
3. “After this meeting, I would feel confident filing a complaint with the Ottawa Police Service, personally or on behalf of a community member.”
4. “Overall, the workshop met my expectations.”
- 72 - The responses to questions 5 and 6 in the Evaluation Questionnaire, which were qualitative in nature, have been integrated throughout the chapter; thus, they are not included here. A detailed discussion of all of the findings appears in the Discussions and Summary section.
TABLE 5: “Before I came to this meeting, I was well informed about the Ottawa Police Service Complaints Process.”
Label Absolute Cumulative Frequency Percentage Strongly Disagree 1 5% Somewhat Disagree 9 45%
Neither Agree Nor Disagree 0 0%
Somewhat Agree 8 40%
Strongly Agree 2 10%
N/A 0 0%
TOTAL 20 100%
FIGURE 2: Breakdown of Respondents’ Responses to Question 1
RESPONSE TO STATEMENT ONE
Strongly Disagree
Somewhat Disagree 10% 0% 5% Neither Agree Nor Disagree Somewhat Agree 40% 45% 0% Strongly Agree N/A
- 73 - TABLE 6: “Now, I have enough information to help community members access the Ottawa Police Service Complaints Process competently.”
Label Absolute Cumulative Frequency Percentage Strongly Disagree 0 0%
Somewhat Disagree 1 5%
Neither Agree Nor Disagree 0 0%
Somewhat Agree 9 45%
Strongly Agree 9 45%
N/A 1 5%
TOTAL 20 100%
FIGURE 3: Breakdown of Respondents’ Responses to Question 2
RESPONSE TO STATEMENT TWO
Strongly Disagree
Somewhat Disagree 5% 0% 5%0% Neither Agree Nor Disagree Somewhat Agree 45% 45% Strongly Agree
N/A
- 74 - TABLE 7: “After this meeting, I would feel confident filing a complaint with the Ottawa Police Service, personally or on behalf of a community member.”
Label Absolute Cumulative Frequency Percentage Strongly Disagree 0 0%
Somewhat Disagree 2 10%
Neither Agree Nor Disagree 1 5%
Somewhat Agree 6 30%
Strongly Agree 11 55%
N/A 0 0%
TOTAL 20 100%
FIGURE 4: Breakdown of Respondents’ Responses to Question 3
RESPONSE TO STATEMENT THREE
Strongly Disagree
Somewhat Disagree 0% 10% 5% Neither Agree Nor Disagree Somewhat Agree 55% 30% Strongly Agree
N/A
- 75 - TABLE 8: “Overall, the workshop met your expectation.”
Label Absolute Cumulative Frequency Percentage Strongly Disagree 0 0%
Somewhat Disagree 2 10%
Neither Agree Nor Disagree 1 5%
Somewhat Agree 9 45%
Strongly Agree 8 40%
N/A 0 0%
TOTAL 20 100%
FIGURE 5: Breakdown of Respondents’ Responses to Question 4
RESPONSE TO STATEMENT FOUR
Strongly Disagree
0% Somewhat Disagree 10% 5% 40% Neither Agree Nor Disagree Somewhat Agree
45% Strongly Agree
N/A
- 76 - Discussions and Summary
The purpose of “A Workshop on Mediating Public/Police Complaints—Implications for Communities of Colour” was to provide content-specific information relating to the OPS complaints process, mediation in particular, to members of multicultural communities and multicultural allied service providers. Based on the statistical data presented above (see Tables 5-8; Figures 2-5), it appears that this goal was met. Yet, care should be taken in the interpretation of the evaluation results and in making generalizations to the larger population. Notably, as the sample size of the respondents was small (n = 20) and does not reflect the heterogeneity of the two groups represented in the workshop, generalizability is limited. Notwithstanding, the results point to the possibility of a knowledge gap regarding the police complaints process among members of ethno-racial minority groups and multicultural allied service providers. The same may be true of the larger Ottawa population.
In response to statements 1-4, from the 20 respondents who completed the Evaluation Questionnaire, 50% indicated that they were not well informed about the OPS complaints process prior to the workshop (45% “Somewhat Disagree” and 5% “Strongly Disagree”). Following the workshop, 90% of respondents reported having gained enough information to help other community members access the OPS complaints process competently (45% “Somewhat Agree” and 45% “Strongly Agree”). 85% reported feeling confident in filing public complaints to the OPS, personally or on behalf of a community member (55% “Strongly Agree” and 30% “Somewhat Agree”). Finally, 85% of respondents indicated that the workshop met their expectations (45% “Somewhat Agree” and 40% “Strongly Agree”).
Questions five and six on the questionnaire were designed to capture qualitative information inaccessible through quantitative research measures. Overall, the participants clearly articulated their view of the challenges within the OPS complaints process, both in investigations and mediation. Respondents cited the absence of a neutral party to oversee investigations of public complaints against police officers as a major concern. In addition, participants appeared skeptical of the police’s impartiality in investigating complaints against its members, in a fair and transparent manner. Furthermore, the findings suggest participants are interested in the integration of external reviewers into the complaints process (from beginning to end). Theoretically speaking, the idea of including external reviewers in the OPS complaints process seems conceivable, however, it requires further exploration as to how this would manifest in practice. Moreover, caution should be exercised to avoid presenting the idea as a panacea for public complaints against the police.
Regarding mediation, it appears many of the factors that make this practice effective also make it susceptible to criticism. Mediation encompasses different approaches; however, the endorsement of a single-model approach incites debates about homogeneity and the sanction of the dominant culture’s ideologies
- 77 - in mediation. The challenges identified in this report (e.g., perceived lack of cultural competency on the part of mediators) can be mitigated. Furthermore, mediation may be applied as an alternative method in dispute resolution for issues arising between the police and members of minority communities, especially youth of colour.
In summary, a concerted effort to engage the public in ongoing consultations regarding the viability of a mediation-based approach in resolving police complaints is suggested. This effort will lead to an increased transparency in the police complaints process and will foster a greater understanding of the process among the community at large. The knowledge generated through this workshop reflects the ever-changing socio-cultural landscape within which the police services conduct their work today. To keep up with societal changes, challenges, pressures, and demands the police services, in general, must continue to implement proactive measures and develop comprehensive mechanisms for engaging the diverse communities they serve, around issues that directly or indirectly impact them. In so doing, the police services will be better positioned to leverage community partnerships, support grass-roots community mobilization, and meet its core responsibilities.
- 78 -
______
Chapter Five: Phase II (Part B)
Making Change, Informing Practice, Building Strong Communities: A Roundtable Discussion Between Police and Youth of Colour ______
- 79 - Introduction
As part of a larger race relations initiative, this second activity of Phase II of the Community Policing—A Shared Responsibility project brought together, in a roundtable dialogue format, representative youth of colour and front-line police officers.32 Participants were from selected parts of the City (Ottawa) where police-minority relations remain tenuous. The dialogue was initiated to promote the exchange of ideas between the Ottawa Police Service (OPS) and youth of colour around the issue of racial profiling in policing in Ottawa; it also aimed to contribute to the development of the OPS integrated diversity training program.33 There was a general agreement among the participants that this dialogue was a valued first step in enhancing communication between the groups. At the same time, participants felt that further consultations, on a regular basis, are required for the relationship between the police and youth of colour to improve.
The dialogue format encouraged discussion around the participants’ reasons for attending the meeting; their thoughts on the factors that contribute to negative police/minority youth relations; key problems underpinning the groups’ current relationship; and their vision of future relations. The themes that arose from these deliberations centered on knowledge and values; expectations and interactions; and hopes and visions for the future. The discussions generated a greater understanding and appreciation of the perspectives of both groups and the role of community policing; the importance of community informants in assisting police to prevent, detect, and yield information likely to lead to the conviction of wrongdoers.
The Committee expects that the dialogue will contribute to increased police capacity in responding to the needs of minority youth of colour, concerning the existence of racial profiling within policing in Canada and in Ottawa in particular. It is expected that the police will perceive this effort as a positive step towards ensuring police accountability, fostering public trust, and eradicating racism/racial profiling.
32 See Appendix VIII for dialogue-related materials, including activity flyer, pre- dialogue meeting agendas for police and youth participants, dialogue agenda, police/youth actions activity handout, evaluation form and results.
33 The OPS integrated diversity training program involves an increase in diversity-related content and exercise into targeted, existing, training opportunities applicable to specific police work situations. Content could be either direct (specific course content related to cultural or religious values or customs), or indirect (scenarios within existing course content that depict interactions with community members from diverse backgrounds).
- 80 - Youth participants were drawn from the Ledbury/Banff, Russell, Cedarwood, Heron, and Hetherington neighbourhoods. In total, fifteen (15) youth and nine (9) police officers from these neighbouring patrol zones participated in the roundtable discussion that lasted three hours.
1. Purpose and Expectation of the Dialogue
“I hope the police can stop racist profiling and can be better trained so they have very little reason to do so.”
“We should be able to see the police as a partner as opposed to as an enemy.” (Youth Participants, May 31, 2007)
The dialogue was designed based on the fact that young people, specifically youth of colour, rarely have the opportunity to speak publicly and in an organized forum on issues directly relevant to their daily lives. As such, the dialogue provided a safe forum for youth of colour to talk openly with front-line police officers about their perceptions and experiences of racism and racial profiling with the OPS, to the fullest extent possible. “Brainstorming” of possible solutions for improving future police/minority youth interactions was actively encouraged.
In general, participants expected that the dialogue would enhance understanding between the groups, and result in a joint agreement on options that should be explored to improve their relationship and contact in the future. Moreover, participants hoped that the dialogue would assist in amending perceived negative behaviour on both sides, and eventually lead to improved safety, security and quality of life in the community. Feedback from this discussion will assist the OPS in further developing its ongoing integrated diversity training program.
2. Format of the Dialogue
“Clothing does not determine criminality. Disrespectful dress (according to others’ perceptions) should not enhance surveillance by police.”
(Youth Participant, May 31, 2007)
The dialogue followed the following agenda:
1. Welcome: Goal and agenda review; introductions; ground rules; assurance that there would be no reprisals from speaking freely within the forum.
2. General themes for discussion: From the youth’s perspective, how can the police help to make life better on the streets? From the police officer’s perspective, what can the youth do to help the police do their job better? Verbatim responses from the participants to these questions are provided
- 81 - in Table 9 (comments from youth) and Table 10 (comments from police officers) respectively.
3. Specific themes for discussion: Personal stories about youth’s experiences with the police, both positive and negative. What went wrong? Why do you think the situation did not go well? What concrete behaviours or techniques can the police employ to improve your relationship with them? The themes arising from these discussions are summarized under “Key Themes Arising from the Dialogue.”
4. Closure: How do you feel now after participating in this dialogue? Closing comments are provided under the heading “Summary.”
- 82 - Table 9: An Ideal Future Relationship between Police and Youth of Colour VERBATIM RESPONSES FROM THE PERSPECTIVE OF THE YOUTH YOUTH ACTIONS POLICE ACTIONS What would the youth do differently in a What should the police officers do relationship of trust with the police? differently in a relationship of trust with the youth? . Socialize in groups without fear of being . Be more respectful. questioned, harassed or detained. . Give rights to all individuals; treat . Able to participate in programs throughout their everybody in the same way and with community without fear of dangerous situations. respect.
. View the police as a partner as opposed to as an . Take the time to initiate contact in a enemy. respectful manner with groups of youth who are present without any purpose other . Cooperate with the police. than to socialize. . Would not argue with police about being stopped . Would not bully young adults at night when but would keep an open mind about their concern no one is around. and how to change it. . Would not pull random people over at night . Trust the police officers, knowing that they care and harass them. for our safety. . Engage in prevention as opposed to . Would not act suspiciously or aggressively intervention. towards or around police officers, so that police do not have a reason to harass us. . Have neighbourhood patrols employing a preventative approach rather than the . Have more respect for the police. Would talk to common reactionary approach that occurs the police with respect and not argue with them. in these neighbourhoods.
. Show grace—in action, in conversation, in . Work with the youth as opposed to information delivery, and in interaction with the confronting them when there is a problem. police. . Would not unfairly target youth of colour. . Know that our tax dollars are funding the police for our own benefit. . Would not engage in racial profiling and would be better trained so that there is little . Follow police orders and do as told. If youth feel reason to do so. they have been disrespected, they take it to court and deal with it there. . Be less aggressive.
. Listen and be patient with the youth.
. Show grace—in action, in conversation, in information delivery, and in interaction with youth.
. Use tax dollars wisely.
WHAT GOES WRONG? WHY? . No cooperation, lack of understanding and . Levels of mistrust. miscommunication among police and youth. . Issues relating to money and budget cuts, . Lack of neighbourhood/community patrols for city taxes, etc. preventative purposes.
. Lack of programs in communities.
. Police officers pull up in their cars and tell youth that they are doing something wrong without explanation.
- 83 - Table 10: An Ideal Future Relationship between Police and Youth of Colour VERBATIM RESPONSES FROM THE PERSPECTIVE OF POLICE OFFICERS YOUTH ACTIONS POLICE ACTIONS What should the youth do differently in a What would the police do differently in a relationship of trust with the police? relationship of trust with the youth? . Respect police as an authority and as a person. . Able to make the community safer.
. Offer the appropriate level of respect in accordance . Start every encounter with an open mind.
with the officer’s position. . Approach youth in a respectful manner.
. Understand that police have a job to do and respect . Enter every situation being sensitive to that—not as much doubt and/or criticism. cultural differences/bias.
. Realize that the police have a goal to achieve in . Better communication, with a better every situation and try to help us get from A to B on understanding of where the youth come from. a path of least resistance. . Participate in community events. . When crime occurs, youth wouldn’t be fearful to speak to us about it. . Would not be on guard as much.
. Cooperate with officers while they are attempting to . Have more of a listening ear to what the conduct their investigations. youth are saying.
. Open discussions, patience. . Call police more often, especially in serious or dangerous situations. . Less suspicious of situations; more desire to speak with youth. . Call/report incidents to police instead of feeling they are “rats.” . Rely more on information and statements made by the youth. . Youth would assist officers if they are a witness to a crime. . Respect the youth’s privacy.
. Less crime, more safety since youth would be able . More trust in the youth. to speak out.
. Youth talk freely with police, have open discussions, more friendship, are less confrontational, less suspicious, less aggressive / obstructive during dialogue.
. Help make their community a better, safer place to live. . Obey the law, know the law, and respect the law. WHAT GOES WRONG? WHY? . Mistrust—from a motivational perspective. . Pre-conceived notions.
. Situations escalate. . No second chance to make a first impression.
. When pulled over in traffic, youth do not know the . Youth don’t understand why we do what we statutes. do.
. Out there on the streets, youth don’t always come . Time constraints, deployment—too busy with to speak to us. calls.
. Stereotypes, negative remarks towards us.
. Youth carry bad experiences with previous officers.
. Youth have a chip on their shoulder, are at times unhelpful, and always think the police are out to bother them.
. Immediate suspicion that the encounter between police and youth is going to be confrontational and will lead to an arrest or even ‘brutality.’
. A closing of ranks on both sides, “battle of the wills.”
. Do not need 24-hour police presence for the youth to show respect.
- 84 - 3. Key Themes Arising from the Dialogue
“The level of mistrust is already high from previous events / occurrences whether in the neighbourhood, city, or country.”
“We need constant communication at all times, without financial or political constraints.”
“The police cannot guarantee the safety of the individuals who come forward to cooperate in solving a crime.”
(Youth Participants, May 31, 2007)
As mentioned earlier, the dialogue was structured to encourage discussion around the participants’ reasons for attending the meeting; their thoughts on the factors that contribute to negative police/minority youth relations; key problems underpinning the groups current relationship, exemplified by personal experiences; and their vision of future relations—both realistic and ideal. Three consistent themes arose from these deliberations:
1. Knowledge and Values;
2. Expectations and Interactions;
3. Hopes and Visions.
Theme # 1: Knowledge and Values
“We both have differences, but cops are good and youth are good too.”
(Youth Participant, May 31, 2007)
The participants stated that they attended the meeting, to a large degree, in order to listen, learn, clear up misconceptions about each other, better understand each other’s positions, and try to inform themselves on the commonly perceived reasons why police and youth of colour encounter difficulties in dealing with each other. Participants expected that establishing common goals would lead to improvements in police training and attitudes on both sides. The youth mentioned, however, that they were nervous about potential reprisals from peers and the police for speaking freely.
- 85 - Understanding Core Values:
The youth acknowledged that they would like to be more actively informed about the resources available to them through their schools or other venues. They expressed some confusion and lack of knowledge about their rights and where they could go to educate themselves about such issues. Youth representatives also stressed the need for parents to have sufficient knowledge about their children’s rights and police practices, so they can effectively assess the legitimacy of their children’s reports about specific police actions. In an effort to build police relations with communities of colour, and, specifically with youth of colour, it was suggested that the OPS increase its affirmative community-based policing engagement practices. As well, continuous review and evaluation of departmental policies and practices that may exacerbate the police/minority youth divide is required.
The police officers stated that they joined the force to help individual citizens, the community at large, and to assure a safe and secure society. As family members themselves, they believe that education and training of youth begins at home and continues at school. Parents, they suggest, should be involved in instilling values of good citizenry in their children, and schools should be more proactive in making students aware of their rights and the help available to them, than is currently the case. When the police escort youth home, parents should not automatically become defensive, but should realize that, in large part, they took this action for the safety of the individual youth or the community at large. The police uniformly believe that parenting skills should reinforce not deplore police actions. The point was raised that early intervention aimed at preventing minority youth from coming into conflict with the law will advance police/youth relations. Also, the welcome and familiarization of new immigrants to the country generally, should include clear assurances that the way police operate in Canada—to serve and protect—may be different from what they are used to in their country of origin; this understanding, the police imply, will engender support, cooperation, and confidence from minority and immigrant communities towards the police.
Understanding the Role of Community Policing:
Although there appears to be a collective understanding among participants that community policing includes, but is not limited to, police officers speaking to students at local schools and “walking the beat,” the youth expressed concern that this was not happening to the extent desired. In response, the officers cited human and financial resource limitations as preventing, to a large degree, Community Police Officers (CPO) from conducting such activities. Thus, it was concluded that a closer examination of these issues (both internally and externally to the OPS) is needed to determine how resources can be freed to allow more officers to “walk the beat” and support continuous outreach efforts to racial and ethnic minority communities in the City.
- 86 - Understanding Each Other:
This theme was repeated throughout the discussion. The youth commented on the importance of the police not passing judgment on a person’s character based on their first impressions alone. For example, the youth explained that even though someone may be dressed “aggressively,” it could simply be a fashion statement and not necessarily an indication of potential trouble. At the same time, the police officers wanted the youth to know that their training and experience have made them sensitive to indicators of potential trouble, such as how a person is dressed, encountering a group of young people in a dark public area in the early hours of the morning, or approaching someone whose hand is in his or her pocket. The police officers also stated that sometimes they approach citizens simply for an innocent enquiry and aggressive or defensive responses are not always appropriate. The youth wanted the police to know that they do not appreciate a rough greeting when first approached. Despite wariness on both sides, the police and the youth felt their contact with each other should be respectful and follow the basic guide: “Treat others as you would like to be treated yourself.” Both groups acknowledged that building an understanding of each other is a work in progress that will take time, effort, and continued dialogue.
Understanding the Importance of Community Police Informants:
A key part of the theme of knowledge and values from the police officers’ perspective, concerns the need for more cooperation and information from members of minority community about crimes, particularly those committed in the youths’ neighbourhoods. The officers explained their frustration of knowing that when one area is cleared of crime, the “criminals” simply move on and set up in another part of town, unless evidence is available to help charge the offenders. The youth explained that fear of having their reputation damaged by being labeled a “snitch” or “rat” or of being assaulted by their peers are often the primary deterrents to such cooperation. The youth explained that there is an unwritten code among them: If a crime is committed against a family member, then providing information to the police is understandable; however, such cooperation is not acceptable in, virtually, any other situation. In a response, the police noted that by adhering to such a code, the youth were giving in to a climate of fear that will pervade and destroy the very neighbourhoods in which they will some day raise their own families. While the youth acknowledged the soundness of this argument, they continued to express reluctance to be a “snitch.” The youth also explained that at times they are afraid to cooperate because they could be unjustly blamed for a crime; nor do they want to be put in the same class as police informants, who do not have credible information and are known to waste police time.
- 87 - The youth stated their concerns about the assurance of confidentiality and personal safety if they provided information to the police. Police officers explained that while they could not always guarantee the safety of all police informants, they endeavour to do so since their priority is community safety and security. They went on to say that although informants are important and helpful to police, and their identities can be kept fairly secure, the challenge is finding reliable witnesses to help build legitimate cases against criminals that can be defended in court.
Theme # 2: Expectations and Interaction
“I would like the police to focus more on prevention as opposed to mainly intervention.”
“Communities affected by the presence of over-policing happen to be the communities where racialized persons live. If you are looking for something, you are sure to find it.”
(Youth Participants, May 31, 2007)
Building Communication and Discussing Racism:
A major concern for the youth, before and during the dialogue, was that their voices would not be heard; another issue was the fear of possible reprisals from peers in the community and police officers for speaking out. Notwithstanding, the youth asked to be given a chance to speak freely, in confidence and without interruption. On the other hand, the police officers stated that they wanted the youth to understand things from their perspective. The dialogue facilitated platforms for both, to a relative degree of success.
In general, both the youth and the police officers believe that the absence of open, healthy, and sustainable communication is in part responsible for the negative relationship between them. Both agreed that community-based policing approaches such as the OPS/Somali Youth Basketball League (SYBL) continue to have positive impact in opening up lines of communication. However, the youth do not feel these initiatives substantively address their concerns about the existence of racial profiling within policing in Ottawa. The issue of racism was raised at least three times by the youth, primarily in relation to being targeted while “hanging around” the streets at night and being pulled over while driving. In discussing these concerns, the police officers tended to avoid the issue of racism and instead focused on laws, policies and procedures. Several officers mentioned that while they do not differentiate in their behaviour between youth of colour and youth in general, they acknowledged that they do relate differently to certain neighbourhoods. Some of the youth mentioned they did not think that racism was the main problem, but that communication was. The subject of racism was not fully and openly explored, particularly by the OPS, in this session.
- 88 - Building Trust:
The youth participants felt that having patrol officers in their neighbourhoods on a regular basis would help build familiarity and trust. At the same time, they felt that any police efforts to develop closer contact with them should be sensitive to the fact that the youth are susceptible to peer pressure; they fear that if they are seen talking to police on a regular basis they could be suspected of being informants and, therefore, ostracized by their peers. The youths’ desire for the police to be a more regular part of their community was brought to light when participants noted that if police appear in neighbourhoods now, it is likely because they are responding to trouble. For their part, the police officers wondered whether youth wanted them to be reactive, i.e., solve crimes, or to be proactive, i.e., build relationships through community patrol to lower the chance of crime occurring. While the police are amenable to the latter, current realities of resource limitations favour the former.
Building Respect:
One of the most cited concerns throughout this dialogue, expressed by both groups, was their significant discontent with the way in which youth of colour and police approach each other. While the youth acknowledged the need for police power, they fear the police use their authority to intimidate them, resulting in a perceived lack of respect. Viewing respect as a reciprocal act, which one gives and hopes to receive in return, the youth thought the police should not demand respect on first contact, given their negative treatment of minority community members and male youth of colour, in particular. Respect, they contend, is not a right that comes with the uniform, but an expression of agency that must be earned. On the other hand, the police officers felt that on first contact, youth of colour should not be aggressive or rude to them; instead, the police should be allowed to explain why an individual was approached or stopped. In the end, a unified approach that takes into consideration both sides of this concern will lead to more respectful police/youth interactions.
Theme #3: Hopes and Visions
“I would like us to be able to socialize in groups without fear of being questioned, harassed, or detained.”
(Youth Participant, May 31, 2007) En masse, the youth and the police expressed their interest and desire for a relationship built on trust. They acknowledged that reaching this goal is a challenge that would require time and effort on both sides, on an ongoing basis. Although the dialogue was considered a good start, the participants suggested that more sessions should be conducted to keep the lines of communication open.
- 89 - According to the youth, a relationship based on trust would result in enhanced community safety and the police would earn their respect, consideration, and understanding. In addition, the youth believe that an increased level of trust would diminish their fear of speaking out, particularly on crimes in progress. They requested, however, that when approaching a crowd or pulling a car over, police officers should not single out a person based on his or her colour, and should be mindful of the need to treat them (the youth) “gracefully,” and without assumptions of guilt.
Similarly, the police officers felt that a greater degree of trust between them and youth would temper their current adversarial relationship, and would result in a de-escalation of conflicts, in favour of enhanced community safety. The police also stated that recognition from and appreciation by the youth for their role in achieving these results would help to strengthen this partnership. Furthermore, the police officers believe that while the youth do not have to appreciate the role police services play in maintaining public order and the pursuit of justice, it is important that they understand it. For that reason, they suggest that the youth be diligent in educating themselves about their rights and related statutes (for example, the 1988 Hufsky Supreme Court challenge regarding random stops of motorists).34 The youth should feel comfortable, without fear of repercussions, to record an officer’s badge number if they think they are being treated unfairly.
It is clear from the above accounts that the youth and the police want their interactions to improve. Both groups, to varying degrees, share the same hopes and visions for the future and are committed to working together to identify the problems affecting their relationship and to develop solutions. One problem, however, is that the police and the youth, it seems, are talking at and not to each other about how to achieve their shared goals.
There is a disconnect between what the youth and the police want from one another: the youth, for the most part, are concerned about the lack of trust and communication between them and the police. They want the problem of racial profiling within policing in Ottawa acknowledged and eliminated, as it has implications for their safety, security, and quality of life. The police, on the other hand, although sympathetic to the youths’ concerns, do not feel they engage in racial profiling or practice racism and thus see no need to respond to these allegations with an expression of acknowledgement.
Regardless of the position taken, the fact remains that racism is a serious issue in Canada. Persons of colour are systemically discriminated against on the basis
34 The accused, Hufsky, refused to submit to an approved screening devise sample, citing intrusion on his Charter rights, section 9. The Supreme Court ruled in favour of the Crown, noting that the random stop and subsequent request for a screening devise sample was proportionate to the situation.
- 90 - of their skin colour and have been for decades. Thus, when a community of people asserts that the police are racially profiling them, this belief, in itself, should be sufficient for the police to take the matter seriously and act accordingly. Failing to do so could undermine future police efforts to develop a sustained and healthy relationship with communities of colour.
In summary, both the police and the youth of colour agreed that a trusting relationship would lead to more cooperation, respect, and honesty between them. Such rapport could also lead police officers to treat minor youth transgressions with judgement and empathy, and encourage both sides to start talking and listening with open minds. Ultimately, a more visible and integrated police presence in the community, free of intolerance, discrimination, and racism is what the youth most desire and believe is possible.
4. Recommendations
Based on the results and key outcomes of this momentous dialogue, the Project Steering Committee strongly urges the OPS to consider and implement the following recommendations for improving police/minority youth relations in the City, as well as the ongoing integrated diversity training program. The Committee proposes the following recommendations:
Recommendation 1: The need for the OPS to recommit to the fundamental principles of equality and its willingness to work collaboratively with communities of colour. To do so, the OPS must further acknowledge the perceptions and experiences of racism and racial profiling within policing in Ottawa, and make efforts to eradicate the problem as a proactive measure.
It is the position of the Committee that police accountability towards the communities they serve begins with strong and positive relations with them. Such positive relations, however, are not possible when members of minority communities believe they are the subject of racism and racial profiling by the police. In instances where racism and/or racial profiling can be documented, the police, one hopes, would acknowledge and repair the injustices that have wrongfully harmed an individual or a community of people. Sadly, this is hardly ever the case. Minority communities in the City of Ottawa have long experienced racism and racial profiling by the police. The communities have demanded that the police publicly acknowledge their engagement in this practice and ban its use as a law enforcement tool. While the OPS recognizes, “there is much work to be done to eliminate racism and racial discrimination” (Chief Bevan, December 15, 2006), it has yet to admit to racial profiling. For that reason, the Committee recommends that the OPS, as a further measure to developing strong and positive relations with communities of colour, and youth of colour in particular, acknowledge the existence and practice of racism and racial profiling within
- 91 - policing in Ottawa. Such recognition is a positive measure towards ensuring police accountability, fostering public trust, and eradicating racism/racial profiling.
Recommendation 2: The need for the OPS to create ongoing opportunities for positive interaction/dialogue with minority youth of colour, and pay particular attention to the issue of perceived or actual power differences in these settings.
It is the position of the Committee that part of the reparation effort needed to strengthen the relationship between the police and minority youth of colour is for the police service to continuously provide opportunities for the youth to engage them on different matters, particularly those concerning race relations. While current community-based policing initiatives, such as the OPS/SYBL and Youth Zoom, continue to play a positive role, they do not go far enough to address the youths’ concerns about being systemically discriminated against. As such, further dialogue similar to the one held on May 31, 2007, should be repeated on a regular basis. For the sessions to be successful, however, attention must be paid to the issue of perceived or actual power differences, as they could negatively influence the dialogue and exacerbate an already fragile situation.
Recommendation 3: The need for the OPS to facilitate processes and mechanisms that would create opportunities for minority youth of colour to engage civically and actively in police-related issues.
It is the position of the Committee that a key contributing factor in minority youth disengagement / disenfranchisement from police-related issues is the lack of, and/or unequal opportunities for civic participation. The existence of racism and racial profiling by police exacerbates the situation, and youth of colour are disproportionately affected. Notwithstanding the real effects of these twin- oppressions on people’s lives, engaging youth of colour in policing issues is critical to increasing and fostering youth engagement in the City. As police- community-based initiatives like the Community Police Action Committee (COMPAC) and Critical Incident—Critical Situation (CI-CS) demonstrate, mobilizing racialized communities in race relations efforts hinges on a set of fundamental principles: respect, honesty, trust, and accountability. These guiding principles must underlie any police intervention aimed at minority youth empowerment for democratic citizenship.
5. Summary
The dialogue of May 31, 2007 created a rare but important opportunity for discussion between minority youth of colour and front-line police officers from the OPS, regarding key problems underpinning the strained relationship between the groups and possible steps for improvement. Given the initial progress achieved through the dialogue, the recommendations presented by the Committee are expected to be seriously considered for implementation.
- 92 - Notwithstanding the reluctance of the youth to talk openly about their negative encounters with the police, discuss why the situation(s) did not go well, and to suggest ways in which the perceived negative outcomes could be prevented from recurring, the organizers still consider the dialogue to be successful. Fear of reprisals from their peers and the police were cited by the youth as reasons for not being forthcoming with their stories. The organizers believe that the police participants’ reluctance to address the youths’ fundamental concerns about racism and to validate their experiences in this regard may have intensified the problem.
On this basis, future police/minority youth dialogues must pay more attention to the fundamental issues of concern to youth of colour; there should be more obvious “buy in” from individual police officers on similar race relations efforts. projects, such as the Community Policing—A Shared Responsibility help address larger problems the police and minority communities face and should be approached with a more open mind than appeared to be the case among some of the police participants. Failing to be open could undercut some, if not all, proactive measures the OPS has undertaken to date, and undermine future efforts to develop a sustained and healthy relationship with communities of colour.
In closing, the police officers expressed their appreciation and admiration for the youth who took time to participate in the discussions. The youth reciprocated by expressing their appreciation for the opportunity to have a face-to-face dialogue with the police. Both parties commented that this dialogue was a useful exercise worthy of duplication.
- 93 - Figure 6: Drawing Clarity from Dialogue: The Participants’ Murals35
35 The following murals were drawn during the Police/Youth Dialogue. Elements of these illustrations were used in the design of this report’s cover page.
- 94 -
______
Chapter Six:
Youth Recommendations Tabled to the Ottawa Police Executive Services Team and Ottawa Police Services Board ______
- 95 - Introduction
The recommendations below emerged from the youths’ dialogue with front-line Ottawa police officers on May 31, 2007.36 The author of this report extracted these recommendations from the murals drawn during the dialogue, and to the steps and actions the youth indicated the police should take to improve their relations. The contents of the mural were then triangulated with the activity report produced from the dialogue to ensure the accuracy of the data. As a final step, the recommendations were presented to the youth for feedback and where appropriate, changes were made to better reflect the youths’ point of view.37
Youths’ Recommendations
Youth of colour proposed that the OPS take the following steps to improve police-minority youth relations in Ottawa:
1. The OPS should acknowledge the existence of institutional racism and racial profiling within policing in Ottawa, and commit to undertaking the changes required to eradicate discriminatory practices.
2. The OPS should recommit to the principles of community policing and work towards a more visible and integrated police presence within communities of colour, free of intolerance, discrimination, and racism.
3. The OPS should continuously review, evaluate, and revise its departmental policies and practices that may exacerbate the police- minority divide.
4. The OPS should train officers to approach a crowd of youth or pull a car over, without singling anyone out based on race; efforts should be made to treat youth of colour without assumptions of guilt.
5. The OPS should increase, as well as broaden, its affirmative community- based policing engagement practices, to ensure minority youth are civically and actively engaged in policing issues.
36 Youth of colour with experiences of racial profiling by members of the Ottawa Police Service, between the ages of 14-30, were recruited in an effort to give voice to a diverse range of views.
37 For more information on the Police/Youth Dialogue, see Chapter 5. Detailed information on the original recommendation report to the Ottawa Police Executive Services Team and the Ottawa Police Services Board appears in Appendix I.
- 96 - 6. The OPS should reinforce through training the need for officers to refrain from using their authority for intimidation purposes; such behaviour is counterproductive, divisive, and disrespectful.
7. The OPS should commit to working with minority youth and building their trust; these efforts would make their jobs easier and diminish the youths’ fear of speaking out, particularly on crimes in progress in their communities.
8. The OPS should facilitate improved awareness among youth of colour about their rights and the role of the police in the community. Diverse
9. The OPS should make human and financial resources available to allow for more officers to “walk the beat.”
- 97 -
______
Chapter Seven: Project Steering Committee Evaluation ______
- 98 - Introduction
The Committee evaluated the Community Policing—A Shared Responsibility project in terms of the achievement of goals (outcome evaluation) and in terms of the processes used to achieve these goals (process evaluation), during a workshop on April 17, 2008.38 The outcome evaluation demonstrates that the Steering Committee made significant progress toward the achievement of its goals, given the resources available. The process evaluation results point to the establishment of a level of trust among the community members and the OPS members of the Committee that was not in evidence at the beginning of the project.
Outcome Evaluation
Each member of the Committee completed a short evaluation questionnaire about the project in terms of the accomplishment of the project’s goals. The table below presents the distribution of members who indicated different levels of partial achievement or excellent progress on each of the three project goals.
Table 11: Steering Committee Responses to Impact of Project on Stated Goals
(N = 7)
Did Not Partial Excellent Achieve Achievement Progress 1 2 3 4 5
Members of multicultural communities are 0 1 3 3 0 better equipped to deal effectively with complaints and concerns about police services, as a result of the increased capacity of organizations mandated to serve them relative to police policies and procedures.
Allied service providers are better equipped to 0 0 4 3 0 assist and support members of multicultural communities to understand and file complaints to the OPS.
Stronger relationships and more frequent 0 0 4 3 0 partnerships between the multicultural communities and the OPS.
Following the assessment of the project goals, the Committee members engaged in a discussion based on five questions: 1) What contributed to the success of the activities? 2) What did we learn about what worked and what did not work? 3) What difference did it make that we did this work? 4) What could we have done differently? 5) What recommendations can we propose for future initiatives? The responses of the group members to these questions are documented below.
38 See Appendix IX for Committee evaluation questionnaire.
- 99 - 1. What contributed to the success of the project activities? . Partnerships with different stake-holders. . Many opportunities to interact and communicate directly with members of the . Participation/open dialogue at all levels of the Police Service. project. . Youth/police dialogue brought both sides . Sulaimon’s (Project Coordinator) expertise, commitment, coordination, focus, and drive together—let the process start. The outreach were essential ingredients of success. to youth was well done.
. Planning subcommittee’s contribution and . OPS sent officers to the dialogue who efforts (service providers coming together) represent the range of opinions within the e.g., arranging for youth and police to meet. Police Service, not just the “easy” ones.
. Open dialogue at Steering Committee level. . Willingness of funder to approve amendments as the direction of the project . Media coverage was good and helpful. changed. . Washington case study on a police/youth . Openness of all parties involved in the dialogue that took place over a number of project. Funder was helpful! sessions helped put our work in perspective. . Bringing together both sides—police and community.
2. What did we learn about what worked and what did not work? . Racism and racial profiling are systemic . Youth still feel intimidated to talk to police challenges and problems. Activities like this (they may always feel that way). Police may contribute to common understanding officers who attended the dialogue still felt among participants and may have impact they would not do anything differently, on individuals; at the systemic level, the although they saw the session beneficial for influence is minor. all.
. “Police on the ground” were not clearly . Youth expect change “now.” They have not informed of project activities and goals. seen change on the street since the Possibly better briefing of police is needed. dialogue, so some feel that it was a “waste of time.” . Partners’ commitment waned over time. Next time we need to be strategic about . Early on in the dialogue, comments made by this. several officers that they were “here because the Staff Sergeant asked me to be” . The dialogue worked to create an were off-putting. intersection between the police and youth; however, youth have not experienced . Each side of the dialogue participants significant improvements in their ongoing walked in with a pre-determined “culture;” relationships with police. one meeting could never get past this.
. There were multiple agendas for the . It could be easier to work with an already project—pulls in different directions. established group, such as the police/youth basketball team. But there may be some . Small individual goals worked better than risks to the stability of that activity. grand objectives. . Police in dialogue may not have maintained . Many times it was difficult to focus on the awareness that youth are “kids”. task at hand. . There were multiple agendas for the . Dialogue outcomes for youth were not great project—pulls in different directions. because they did not see police dealing with racism. Some pre-dialogue meetings would . The dialogue was an experiment. We need have helped set the stage. a 2nd, 3rd, and 4th time to get it right. We now know some ways to make “next time” more effective, but we have no next time!
- 100 - 3. What difference did it make that we did this work?
. It is possible that the lives of minority . Progress was made in the youth’s under- youth and community members have standing that police and service providers do improved, as a result of a better listen to their needs; youth have a better relationship with the police. understanding of what police are about and police are less likely to judge youth based on . Police education on needs of diverse appearance. communities was enhanced, particularly around perceived racial profiling. . Police officers may have seen a perspective of the youth that they had not seen before. . Those who participated in any of the elements of the project gained broader . We removed some of the barriers between the knowledge and there was greater public police and the youth on the street. education. . We created a model for police/youth dialogue. . Individuals who participated in the project We now have experience and knowledge that have taken the knowledge they acquired we did not have before. out there to the community—there was a large impact from this. . We recognize the need to ensure the project recommendations are tabled with the OPS . Individuals have a better understanding Board. of the process to file complaints to OPS. . Within the OPS, we de-mystified the . Sense of empowerment was handed conversation regarding racism—we showed over to the communities; they gained a that we can have this conversation and still feeling they could make a difference and remain standing. have their voices heard. . The dialogue provided opportunity for youth to . Capacity of individuals and service articulate their experiences directly to the providers was increased. police, and to have those experiences
. We informed the community that there are documented, for the first time in Ottawa. organizations who will listen and are trying to create initiatives to address their concerns.
4. What could we have done differently?
. Additional funding would have enhanced . Perhaps more responsibility should be given the project (for a follow-up longitudinal to project partners to get better participation? study). . Pre-meeting with police participants. . The police/youth interaction was the . More time. most challenging, valuable portion and — we could have taken the opportunity to explore that more. We created an appetite…and probably would have derived valuable information by pursuing it more.
. Provide more time for police and youth to meet before the project. More briefings for police and youth to understand fully the goal of the project.
- 101 - 5. What recommendations can we propose for future initiatives?
. Longer time frame—more funding. . Every two or three years, we need to do the same activities and bring multicultural . Expansion to include more activities with community members and police together for communities of colour (not just certain dialogue and workshops. groups). . Deeper connection to actual communities. . Focus on systemic or individual impact— not both. . The dialogue needs to be branded as one continuous activity to build credibility and . More time allotted for meetings/socials momentum. for police and youth prior to the actual conversation between them. . Youth grow up—so we need to keep doing the work—planting seeds that can be taken . Ensure only one or two proposed into adulthood. outcomes with everyone clearly on board.
. This should be a continuous project.
Process Evaluation
The second part of the Committee’s evaluation workshop examined the processes of the Committee itself. The Community Mobilization Scorecard was used as a tool to evaluate these processes. The Scorecard offers a view of how the Committee came together to form a “mobilized community” around the issue of shared responsibility for community policing and provides a means for focusing on areas that worked well and on areas of possible improvements.
Community Mobilization Scorecard
According to the Community Mobilization model, community mobilization involves three processes that are subtle, difficult to define and measure, and interrelated in complex ways. Nevertheless, understanding these component processes and their role in community mobilization is important to ensure that mobilization efforts are optimally effective. The processes that contribute to effective community mobilization are:
(1) heightened sense of community;
(2) enhanced mobilization capacity; and
(3) increased readiness for focused action.
Each of these processes is necessary for effective mobilization. The indicators associated with each process are outlined in Table 1, vi.
Successful community mobilization is directly linked to the indicators of the three processes noted above. As the factors related to “sense of community” strengthen, the level of community spirit correspondingly increases. If any of these factors weaken, the level of community spirit correspondingly diminishes.
- 102 - “Enhanced mobilization capacity” is the movement of community members from dormancy in pre-existing groups or potentially active in yet-to-be formed groups, toward action. If any of the factors within “enhanced mobilization capacity” strengthen, the capacity of community members to mobilize for action correspondingly increases. As any of these factors weaken, the capacity to mobilize correspondingly diminishes. Community mobilization efforts aim to reach desired community outcomes. A community fully ready for focused action (fully mobilized community) demonstrates high levels in its corresponding factors—a community partially prepared falls short in one or more of these areas.
Heightened Sense of Community
The Committee rated the “Sense of Community” achieved among its members and partners through the project at 72%. This result indicates the effort members made to reach out to each other; they developed relationships that transcended the issues that brought the Committee together.
Committee Members’ Comments on their “Sense of Community”:
Participating partners demonstrated a commitment to shared outcomes.
Their involvement waned at times and it was hard to pick up momentum again; this impacted the amount of time spent on project activities.
Some Committee members did not interact with other members outside the Committee meetings; others experienced more of an ongoing conversation with Committee members in opportunities, such as conversations during the drive home from meetings.
The Project Coordinator felt that there was less opportunity for him to speak up than he would have liked, due to his status, age, and power differences among members of the Committee.
The group shared some common beliefs; however, there were differences among them based on their diverse backgrounds.
The Committee was able to make more progress later in the project than at the beginning. One member said, “I actually see the police as people now. I have a stronger belief that we are actually trying to get somewhere.”
The project began with a sense of skepticism among community members regarding the commitment of the OPS to address the issues of racism and racial profiling. Over the course of the project, the Committee members generated a sense of community among themselves and the partner organizations as well as participating community members. The project provided the opportunity for
- 103 - building trust among community and police members, trust that was not necessarily present at the beginning of the process. Community members found a level of commitment to racial equality in the OPS that went beyond their expectations; however, they continue to have reservations about the amount of change that will result from this commitment.
Enhanced Mobilization Capacity
The Committee rated their “Mobilization Capacity” at 83%, indicating that group members enjoyed high levels of leadership, community “know-how”, and support.
Committee Members’ Comments on their “Mobilization Capacity”:
The meetings were timed appropriately to the tasks.
More resources for staff would have helped—engaging a full-time Coordinator rather than part-time.
The Project Coordinator did a great job.
The OPS Director of Community Development played a significant role in setting direction from the police standpoint.
A process evaluation in the middle of the project would have been useful.
The Committee felt that they had the resources to do the job at hand. Community members brought their knowledge of community development and of their respective communities to the table; the leadership of the Coordinator and the OPS staff was terrific; and the Committee meetings were well organized. A desire for more project staff time for the Coordinator was noted.
Increased Readiness for Focused Action
The Committee rated their “Readiness for Focused Action” at 74%. This score reflects Committee members’ ability to move forward with specific activities, even when the project goals were not resolved to the extent desired.
Committee Members’ Comments on their “Readiness for Focused Action”:
“When we needed to pull together we did”—but the group effort was not always consistent.
The Haitian community was represented at the beginning of the project but dropped off later on. The OPS now has relationship with this community that could positively affect future efforts on their behalf.
- 104 - Project goals were not realistic— the Committee adapted its plans and the goals evolved accordingly.
To some degree each Committee member had their own perspective of the project goals—some of this was a direct consequence of the delay in receiving funding for the project.
The great variety of perspectives at the project table contributed to the diversity of action.
Committee members were able to focus on short-term gains.
The Committee successfully dealt with the modifications required to the original proposal and developed a project that achieved a number of successes. They acknowledged that these modifications were never fully resolved, as the need to “get moving” took precedence over process issues. In addition, there was some variation in the commitment level of Committee members over time. However, the Committee was, in the end, able to focus on the short-term gains the project timeline allowed.
Summary
Overall, the Committee witnessed significant progress in the achievement of the objectives of the Community Policing—A Shared Responsibility project. Committee members saw “excellent progress” or “partial achievement” on all three of the project goals, i.e., 1) increase multicultural community members’ understanding of police services’ structures and complaints procedures, through a series of educational workshops; 2) equip allied service providers with the skills needed to assist and support members of multicultural communities in filing complaints to the OPS; and 3) promote ongoing partnerships among multicultural communities, allied service providers, and the OPS, in order to inform the delivery of services and programs by the police service. Relationships and trust were developed among the community and police members. As well, the Committee has presented a direction for future action: the implementation of police/youth dialogues as an ongoing activity. The dialogues will provide youth of colour with an opportunity to represent themselves and engage with the police on a range of matters, especially those relating to racism and racial profiling.
- 105 -
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Chapter Eight: Conclusions ______
- 106 - This report is the result of a federally funded race relations project, Community Policing—A Shared Responsibility, aimed at improving the relationship among the Ottawa Police Service (OPS) and ethno-racial minority communities in the City of Ottawa. The report chronicles the activities undertaken as part of this multi-year project; as well, it presents the results of an inquiry into the factors that contribute to tenuous relationships among front-line police officers and youth of colour. The results of this inquiry are substantiated by a list of recommendations tabled to the three levels of leadership within the OPS, with a call to action as part of its ongoing efforts to improve relations with racialized communities. Additional recommendations from the Project Steering Committee further delineate a new direction for the police service to take in their response to the needs of these communities.
The Community Policing—A Shared Responsibility project aimed to improve the ability of members of multicultural communities to deal effectively with complaints and concerns about policing services; to equip allied service providers with the knowledge and tools they need to assist and support members of multicultural communities in understanding and filing complaints with the OPS; and to create opportunities for the establishment of stronger relationships and more frequent partnerships among multicultural communities and the OPS. The results of project-related activities suggest that that these goals were partially or completely met.
Participants in Phase I of the project (an all-day conference that included three workshops) generally appreciated the timeliness of the event; they commented that the conference brought people together, and that the guest presentations were valuable to them. Other comments noted that the event was lengthy.
Community/allied service participants who took part in the Mediation Workshop in Phase II of the project demonstrated strong evidence of increased knowledge and capacity in accessing the police complaints process (90%); whereas pre- workshop only 10% of the participants indicated familiarity with and knowledge of the police complaints process, and 50% reported no knowledge of the process at all. Overall, 85% reported that the workshop met their expectations.
Participants’ feedback regarding the police/minority youth dialogue in Phase II of the project revealed that the participants thought the dialogue was a good use of their time, but that such dialogues must be ongoing for police and minority youth relationships to improve. The results also highlighted ongoing tensions between the groups surrounding their perception of racism and racial profiling in policing in Ottawa. The youth participants spoke of the presence of racism and racial profiling as a daily reality and stated that they would like its use as a law enforcement tool stopped. The police participants, on the other hand, indicated that they treat all youth in the same manner. Implicit in their responses is the belief that the police do not engage in racial profiling and that the perception of
- 107 - officers’ unfair treatment among youth of colour is based on their lack of understanding of “realities of policing.”
Finally, in Phase III, an evaluation of the project by the Project Steering Committee and a follow-up meeting with youth participants from the police/youth dialogue (a separate follow-up meeting was held with police participants as well) generally reflected the view that more needs to be done in order for positive change to occur. The police service’s acknowledgment of racial profiling in policing in Ottawa would serve as a strong foundation for future activities engaging the police and communities of colour. Importantly, as minoritized individuals are targeted and experience the injustices associated with racial profiling, it is vital that the police recognize the impact this has on their well-being and those of their communities. Individual members of racialized communities struggle with the consequences of unfair treatment and the tensions that persist as a result of unsettled race relations.
As the report reveals, a number of prevention and intervention strategies must be further investigated to determine their effectiveness in discouraging and ending the practice of racial profiling. Among these strategies are: the collection of more extensive and diverse data, stronger policies and laws prohibiting racial profiling, increased education among the police services as well as the community, and greater accountability among “offenders.” These strategies, among others, must be further investigated in order to determine their potential in alleviating the practice of racial profiling. Such efforts should be implemented at the federal, provincial, and municipal level. In addition, communities and individuals from different backgrounds (e.g., White, racialized, rich, poor, etc.) must become more involved in advocating for improved practices and processes in law enforcement, with the aim of ending racial profiling in policing.
- 108 -
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Appendix I: Report to Ottawa Police Services Board ______
- 109 - REPORT RAPPORT
DATE: 17 July 2008
TO: Executive Director, Ottawa Police Services Board
FROM: Chief of Police, Ottawa Police Service
SUBJECT: COMMUNITY POLICING—A SHARED RESPONSIBILITY PROJECT: A FOCUS ON POLICE-MINORITY YOUTH RELATIONS IN OTTAWA
RECOMMENDATIONS
That the Ottawa Police Services Board:
1. Endorse the principles associated with ongoing police/youth dialogue initiatives outlined in this report, to ensure the safety and security of the community and in further support of the 2007-2009 Ottawa Police Business Plan.
2. Receive this report and presentation for information.
BACKGROUND
According to the Statistics Canada 2006 Census, the visible minority population in Ottawa-Gatineau is the fifth largest in Canada, after Toronto, Vancouver, Montreal, and Calgary. Three and a half percent of the overall Canadian visible minority population (16.2%) resides in the Ottawa-Gatineau metropolitan areas, and Blacks are the largest minority group among them.
The increasing proportion of non-White, non-Aboriginal, visible minority groups in the Ottawa-Gatineau region has and continues to enrich the social, cultural, and economic life of the cities therein. Yet, visible minorities continue to experience inequalities and discrimination. These issues are particularly apparent when incidents of racial profiling occur in the local, provincial, and national Police Services. Evidence suggests that this practice disproportionately affects racialized communities and, in particular, young men of colour.
- 110 - Following the Ambassador Grill and Chad Aiken incidents in 2004—two well- known cases where members of the Ottawa Police Service allegedly engaged in racial profiling—representatives of several community organizations, a local academic institution, and the Ottawa Police Service came together to develop and formalize an action plan to improve police-minority relations in Ottawa. The plan transformed into a large project entitled “Community Policing—A Shared Responsibility,” and received a two-year grant from the federal Department of Canadian Heritage, Multiculturalism Program (2006-2008).
A multi-party Project Working Committee, under the leadership of a Project Coordinator, undertook several initiatives to identify, prioritize, and develop solutions to address policing issues that negatively impact visible minority communities, Black youth in particular, and to improve service delivery to members from these communities.
DISCUSSION
The project consisted of three phases, each reflecting a commitment to institutional and community capacity building.
Phase I was an all-day conference on the theme of Racism and Racial Profiling. The conference brought together multicultural community leaders, allied service providers, youth of colour, scholars, community activists, human rights’ specialists, and the Ottawa Police Service, including the then Chief of Police, Vince Bevan. The conference aimed to inform public dialogue about multiculturalism, racism, and diversity and engender sustained action to combat racial profiling in policing in Ottawa.
Phase II involved two activities: (1) a workshop that explored, in-depth, the Police Service’s complaints process in order to understand its implications for communities of colour; and (2) the launching of a three hour open dialogue among front-line police officers and youth of colour. The dialogue explored racial profiling in policing practices and its impact on police-minority youth relations in Ottawa; it created a model for sustained channels of communication between the groups both locally and nationally.
Phase III was a period of reflection and involved an evaluation of the project activities. This phase included a consultation with members of the Project Working Committee to assess the success of the project in meeting its goals.
This important and timely project built upon efforts undertaken by the Diversity and Race Relations Section as part of the Police Service’s ongoing Partnership In Action initiative (PIA). PIA is underscored by a commitment to the principles of community policing; it promotes respectful, transparent, and trusting partnerships between the police and the community as the foundation for effective policing.
- 111 - The Project Working Committee consisted of:
Sulaimon Giwa Project Coordinator South-East Ottawa Community Health Centre Leslie McDiarmid Manager, Health Services39
Somali Centre for Family Services Abdi Karod Executive Director
David Pepper Director, Community Development & Corporate Communications
Ottawa Police Service John Medeiros Staff Sergeant, Diversity & Race Relations
Stephanie Guilbeault Constable, Diversity & Race Relations
Carleton University School of Social Work Karen Schwartz Professor
Jewish Family Services of Ottawa Mark Zarecki Executive Director
Community Members/Groups/Associations
Trinidad/Tobago Association Michael Assivero Ex-President
Haitian Community Jocelyne Constant Community Organizer
Evalt Lemours Groupe Anti-Délinquance En Poésie (ADEP)
The multi-stakeholder Project Working Committee employed an asset-based model, rooted in community development principles, and took advantage of the available resources, skills, and expertise of its members in its planning and activities. Collaboration among stakeholder groups was not always easy given their competing interests and divergent engagement strategies. However, the Committee worked together effectively to improve relationships among the police and visible minority communities, to identify ways to maximize the effective delivery of police services to these marginalized segments of society, and to inspire confidence in the police among racialized groups by increasing their understanding of police practices and procedures, especially the complaints process.
39 At the time of this report, Leslie McDiarmid was the Manager responsible for Health Services at South-East Ottawa Community Health Centre. Since then, she has taken on the position of Executive Director for the Centre.
- 112 - The following three recommendations for improved police-minority community relations emerged from this project and joint collaboration:
Recommendation 1: The need for the Ottawa Police Service to recommit to the fundamental principles of equality and its willingness to work collaboratively with communities of colour. To do so, the OPS must further acknowledge the perceptions and experiences of racism and racial profiling within policing in Ottawa, and to make efforts to eradicate the problem as a proactive measure.
Recommendation 2: The need for the Ottawa Police Service to create ongoing opportunities for positive interaction/dialogue with minority youth of colour, and pay particular attention to the issue of perceived or actual power differences in these settings.
Recommendation 3: The need for the Ottawa Police Service to facilitate processes and mechanisms that would create opportunities for minority youth of colour to engage civically and actively in police-related issues.
The “Police/Youth Dialogue”
Following a review of existing community-policing initiatives aimed at addressing police-minority youth relationships, the Project Working Committee planned and executed a “Police/Youth Dialogue” on 31 May 2007, at the South-East Ottawa Community Health Centre.
The structured roundtable dialogue was aimed at reaching action-oriented recommendations to address the problems of racism and racial profiling. This unique dialogue brought together front-line police officers and male youth of colour from hard–to–reach communities.40 It created a strong basis for further developments of its kind.
The dialogue was an opportunity to raise awareness to the challenges that these groups face, for the police participants to share experiences from practice, and for youth participants to convey their experiences of encounters with the police related to racial profiling.
Beyond these clear objectives, the dialogue was an opportunity to support the Ottawa Police Service in reaching its goals of accessibility, responsiveness to racialized communities, and the development of its Integrated Diversity Training Program.
40 Similar past and ongoing efforts undertaken by local groups—such as the Ottawa-Carleton Area Police Community Council (OCAPCC), the Local Agencies Serving Immigrants (LASI), the National Capital Alliance on Race Relations (NCARR), and the Community-Police Action Committee (COMPAC) — have established the foundation for this dialogue.
- 113 - Recommendations from Youth
The success of the “Police/Youth Dialogue” was strengthened by a compilation of the participating youths’ recommendations in a report to the Ottawa Police Service (OPS). In total, nine (9) recommendations were identified, as follows41:
1. The OPS should acknowledge the existence of institutional racism and racial profiling within policing in Ottawa; it should commit to undertaking the changes required to eradicate discriminatory practices.
2. The OPS should recommit to the principles of community policing and work towards a more visible and integrated police presence within communities of colour, free of intolerance, discrimination, and racism.
3. The OPS should continuously review, evaluate, and revise the departmental policies and practices that may exacerbate the police- minority divide.
4. The OPS should train officers to approach a crowd of youth or pull a car over without singling anyone out based on race; efforts should be made to treat youth of colour without assumptions of guilt.
5. The OPS should increase as well as broaden its affirmative community- based policing engagement practices, and ensure minority youth are civically and actively engaged in policing issues.
6. The OPS should reinforce, through training, the need for officers to refrain from using their authority for intimidation purposes; such behaviour is counterproductive, divisive, and disrespectful.
7. The OPS should commit to working with minority youth and building their trust; these efforts would make their jobs easier and diminish the youths’ fear of speaking out, particularly on crimes in progress in their communities.
8. The OPS should facilitate improved awareness among youth of colour about their rights and the role of the police in the community.
9. The OPS should make human and financial resources available to allow for more officers to “walk the beat.”
41 These compilations are an abridged version of the youths’ recommendations. Care has been taken to maintain the integrity and accuracy of information through triangulation by data sources, including dialogue murals, causal flowcharts, participant observation, and follow-up with the youth participants.
- 114 - These recommendations are currently being considered and integrated into the ongoing work of the Diversity and Race Relations Section in collaboration with other Sections, such as the Professional Development and Youth Services. These recommendations will also be reviewed by the Community Police Action Committee (COMPAC),42 which has determined that youth engagement and issues are its number one priority.
The recommendation of this report to implement an ongoing “Police/Youth Dialogue” coincides with two of the five key priority areas for action that the Ottawa Police Service has identified in its 2007-2009 Business Plan, namely “Partnership and Interoperability” and “Being the Policing Employer of Choice for All.”
Both Business Plan priorities speak to notions of leveraging community partnerships to solve local problems and/or explore opportunities for continuous learning and growth. In addition, these priorities echo sentiments the former Chief of Police, Vince Bevan, presented at the launch of the project in 2006, where he spoke of the Ottawa Police Service’s commitment and the need to set the stage for police services of the future.43
Recently, the Ottawa Police Services Board announced its commitment to address community concerns, as part of a community engagement strategy. This strategy is expected to result in the implementation of several “public interest” activities, among which youth issues will be examined. Current conditions suggest that there is a concentrated effort among police authorities in Ottawa to identify and respond to (minority) youth-related concerns. The recommended ongoing police-minority youth dialogue promises to support the Ottawa Police Service, the Ottawa Police Services Board, and minority communities in meeting their shared goals of improving police accountability, fostering public trust, and eradicating racism/racial profiling, with a broad outlook to improve police-minority youth relations.
In making the proposed dialogue a priority for police services in the city, the Project Working Committee recommends that the Ottawa Police Services Board commit to encouraging the Chief of Police and/or his delegates to take meaningful and measurable steps in its implementation; and that the Board work with the Chief of Police to realize this unique opportunity to transform the relationship among the police, ethnic minority communities, and youth of colour in particular.
42 COMPAC is a city-wide community/police advisory and coordinating body representing a partnership between police and visible minority and Aboriginal communities in Ottawa.
43 The complete transcript of Chief Bevan’s speech can be downloaded from the Ottawa Police Service website, (ottawapolice.ca).
- 115 - PUBLIC CONSULTATIONS
Community consultations were carried out over the two year project period. Numerous individuals, groups, and community organizations were successfully engaged in the project’s key focus areas. During the planning, implementation, and evaluation stages of the project, members of visible minority communities (including youth), allied services providers, relevant sections of the Ottawa Police Service (e.g., Patrol, Professional Standards, Youth, Community Development, Diversity and Race Relations), academics and practitioners, as well as representatives from the Ontario Human Rights Commission and the African Canadian Legal Clinic were consulted and involved in various capacities.
The contributions of these individuals played an important role in the success of the project, and are reflected in the many reports that have consequently been produced. Copies of these reports, along with the Final Project Report, will be made available on ottawapolice.ca, the Ottawa Police Service website, as of September 2008.
Similar consultations have taken place in separate meetings with Chief of Police Vern White and the Ottawa Police Service Executive Team. These discussions focused on exploring strategies to ensure an ongoing dialogue among front-line police officers and youth of colour, as part of the Police Service’s Business Plan to address youth-related issues through an integrated strategy. In addition, the parties examined the implications of a proposed city-wide dialogue on police training, especially as it relates to the Ottawa Police Service integrated diversity training and the Service-identified need for enhanced cultural competency amongst police members.
Preliminary results of the consultations with the police are encouraging from the perspective of the non-police participants. The candid and frank reflections of the consultation participants on the complex but workable relationships among the police and Ottawa’s minority communities, youth of colour in particular, suggest that the police are committed to positive change; they are exploring diverse opportunities to support and assist in improving their relationships with these segments of society and their service delivery to them, in a manner that is sustainable, fiscally sound, and transparent.
An additional consultation occurred in the form of a presentation by the Project Coordinator to COMPAC. The presentation resulted in an open dialogue, allowing for a fluid exchange of ideas and experiences and generated support for the project. A follow-up to this meeting will occur when the final results of the project are shared with COMPAC members.
A presentation was also delivered to the South-East Ottawa Community Health Centre Program Coordination Committee earlier this year (March 2008). This eight-member Committee consists of representatives from the Centre’s Board of Directors, Senior Program Staff, community representatives, and the Executive Director.
- 116 - Finally, in an effort to encourage visible minority communities and the broader public to engage in actions to combat racism/racial profiling by increasing public awareness, the preliminary and final results of this project have and/or are scheduled to be presented at the following local/national conferences:
. 11th World Conference, International Institute for Restorative Practices, October 2008, Toronto;
. United Way Sharing Our Strengths Conference, June 2008, Ottawa;
. Carleton University School of Social Work 2nd Annual Research Day, April 2008, Ottawa.
FINANCIAL STATEMENT
The “Community Policing—A Shared Responsibility” project was funded by the federal Department of Canadian Heritage, Multiculturalism Program ($128,104), with professional contributions in time from the Project Working Committee members. The Committee’s non-cash contributions ensured that the costs associated with the two year project were kept below standard operating expenditures for a project of this scale. There are no costs associated with this report.
CONCLUSION
The substantive recommendation presented in this report, for adoption by the Ottawa Police Services Board is derived from the “Police/Youth Dialogue” conducted on 31 May 2007 among front-line police officers and male youth of colour concerning the police practice of racial profiling. In this dialogue the participants explored ways to improve their relationships at the street level. One of the major outcomes of this dialogue was a new found, shared interest among the police and youth participants to establish ongoing dialogues similar to the one described in this report.
At this important juncture in the City of Ottawa, youth from racial minority backgrounds were able to reflect on their first-hand experiences with the police, to put forward a set of recommendations for action, and to highlight areas where the police can improve in their interactions with them. This event proved important for the police participants as well. Some of the police participants were able to contextualize the youths’ experiences of racial profiling within an understanding of the steps that can be taken to minimize the negative impact of policing on the youth.
Although the “Police/Youth Dialogue” points to the need for further action, in no way does this recommendation overlook the many positive steps the Ottawa Police Service has taken and continues to take to build the trust of minority
- 117 - communities. It is clear from this dialogue, however, that the process of reconciliation between these groups will take some time, and requires continuous effort for long-term change to occur. The proposed action will serve to bridge the racial and cultural divide among the police and minority communities by honouring the past and believing in a better future.44
(Original signed by)
Sulaimon Giwa, Project Coordinator, Community Policing - A Shared Responsibility
(Original signed by)
David Pepper, Director, Community Development & Corporate Communications
(Original signed by)
Vern White, Chief of Police the same version
44 This report was submitted to the Ottawa Police Services Board and appeared in the Board’s meeting agenda of July 28, 2008. The content of the report was presented to Board and community members in attendance.
- 118 -
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Appendix II: Interim Activity Report(s) ______
- 119 - Interim Activity Report
Community Policing—A Shared Responsibility
Period Covered: April 1, 2006 to September 30, 2007 ______
Introduction & Context:
The Community Policing—A Shared Responsibility project is a joint initiative among the South-East Ottawa Community Health Centre, the Ottawa Police Service (OPS), the Jewish Family Services of Ottawa, the Somali Centre for Family Services and the Carleton University School of Social Work.
This project aims to bring together members of Ottawa’s multicultural communities and the OPS for the purposes of enhancing civic participation, developing cultural competency and addressing systemic racism. Central to this collaborative process are the building and strengthening of relationships that will create the basis for future initiatives, with the goals of: affecting institutional change in organizational policies and practices of the OPS; raising the community’s awareness of the police complaints process; and developing new ways for the police service to better approach and train officers on diversity and race relations.
Key visions of this project include building multicultural community members’ capacity to understand the workings of the police service and empowering them to address ongoing diversity and race relations issues in their relations with the police. The project aimed to illuminate the adverse and discriminatory impact of the police services’ structures and procedures on people of colour and to help community members respond to inquiries triggered by allegations of racism among members of the Ottawa Police Service.
The following is an overview of the project activities for the period of April 1, 2006 to September 30, 2007. This report is chronological in nature.
Activities to Date:
April 1, 2006 to June 30, 2006
In May 2006, the Project Steering Committee held a series of interviews for the position of Project Coordinator of the race relations initiative. The successful candidate was hired on May 24, 2006 (on a part-time basis). The Project Coordinator is primarily responsible for project development, implementation, and evaluation. At the time of the first Interim Report, the Community Policing—A Shared Responsibility project was in its developmental stage. The project has since progressed steadily, and Phase I was successfully launched on December 15, 2006.
- 120 - The Project Coordinator’s engagement in research activities pertaining to the project has to date been limited. In general, research efforts have focused largely on exploring effective anti-racism training tools and materials to meet the needs of the target population and the overall project goals.
In addition to the project (but related to the initiative), the Coordinator has been invited to participate in the Hate Crimes Community Working Group. Briefly, the Group—established by the Ontario Government in December 2005—works to identify barriers to the delivery of programs and services for victims of hate crimes; it also explores best practices for combating crimes motivated by hate in Ontario, across the country and internationally. Expert recommendations that the group intends to table to the Attorney General and the Minister of Community Safety and Correctional Services are expected to enhance services for victims of hate crimes and prevent further victimization.
During the period of April 1 to June 30, 2006, members of the Project Steering Committee met with the Project Coordinator to discuss the details and logistics of the project activities. The meetings resulted in several important decisions regarding the project proposal, its target population, and the proposed activities. In the following pages each of these areas is discussed in more detail.
The Project Proposal
The partners agreed, in principle, that the existing project plan required re- working, as it had been written over two years ago and did not reflect the present experience and context of the relationship between the OPS and ethno-racial minority communities. Following the events that precipitated this project, the OPS has made efforts to address and explore ways to reduce systemic barriers, increase its capacity to serve the community fairly and without discrimination, and respond to citizen’s complaints equitably. As part of its efforts the Service is now in the process of an institutional transition. Specifically, the OPS has been examining ways to train its officers to deliver discriminatory-free services to the community, with particular focus on members of ethno-racial minority communities. Consequently, the OPS is now shifting away from its customary stand-alone diversity training to a more sophisticated integrated diversity training module. Essentially, the integrative diversity approach will amalgamate diversity exercises into targeted, existing training opportunities; as such, diversity training will be more effective in the long term and applicable to specific work situations.
The Target Population
In addition to the existing two target populations of the project (Somali and Arab communities), as outlined in the original proposal, members of the Project Steering Committee were to identify an additional target community for the project. At the June 13, 2006 meeting, following an extensive discussion on the communities suggested (e.g., Aboriginal, Haitian and Jamaican), and further
- 121 - consideration of the project’s resources, the Committee decided to maintain its focus on the Somali and Arab communities alone. The Committee’s decision was based on the conviction that the project’s goals will be better achieved in this manner.
The Committee has since revisited the project’s target populations and, based on new information, has decided to substitute the Arab community with the Caribbean/West Indies community. This decision was made in light of the information one of the Committee partners shared. He maintains that, generally speaking, the Arab community’s concerns, in Ottawa and elsewhere in Canada, are mainly with the national security agency, namely the Canadian Security Intelligence Services (CSIS).
After considerable debate and discussion on this new information, the Committee decided that it would be in the project’s and the community’s best interest to limit the project’s target populations to members from ethno-racial minority communities with tenuous relationships with the OPS. Therefore, the Committee considered it appropriate and necessary to include the Caribbean/West Indies community (and exclude the Arab community) for the purpose of this project.
In addition, it was also decided that the project will focus chiefly on male youth of colour between the ages of 14-30, as they are most likely to come in contact with the police. As well, it was suggested and agreed upon that in selecting community leaders for training, every effort will be made to include representation from youths, when possible, and from both genders. This will ensure that the concentration of trained community leaders is reflective of the communities being served.
Proposed Project Activities
It was agreed that the Project Coordinator will prepare a detailed work plan for the Committee to review at the July meeting. The revised project activities will reflect the modifications made to the project proposal, which aim to incorporate the experiences and current contexts of the OPS and ethno-racial minority communities in the City of Ottawa.
In the final week of June, the Project Coordinator met with the project partners to discuss their visions for the project, address their concerns around the project activities and their delivery, and how best to ensure the success of this initiative. Such meetings will be ongoing up until the project’s completion in 2008.
July 1, 2006 to September 30, 2006
Since the submission of the last interim report, much work has gone into devising two solid project work plans (see Appendix IV) for the Project Steering Committee’s consideration. In fact, a good part of the month of July was
- 122 - dedicated to this endeavour, resulting in the construction of a work plan specifically tailored to the research component of the project and a work plan that addresses the main project activities.
Initially, in terms of the main project activities, the goal was to conduct three information and educational workshops, including the Concept of Community Policing, Community Members’ Rights and Responsibilities, and Complaints Policies and Procedures. For reasons discussed below, the total number of workshops has now been reduced to two. The rationale for this change is based on the OPS’s position that nothing new can be achieved through a workshop on the Concept of Community Policing. It is their view that the contemporary policing strategy of the OPS is already rooted in the practice of community policing. Accordingly, this workshop activity was dropped.
In the middle of July 2006, a meeting was held with both the Research Project Partner from Carleton University and the Research Assistant. The meeting was an opportunity for the research team to discuss, in depth, the research process and methodologies as well as to define the research question(s). Notwithstanding the team’s success in achieving these goals, the research team has decided to put the research component of the project on hold, pending Immigration Canada’s decision on the Research Assistant’s work visa application. A decision is expected to be reached in mid October or early November 2006.
On August 23, 2006, the Project Coordinator presented the revised, completed project work plans to the project’s funding partner. On the whole, the funding partner emerged confident in the direction the project was headed, and offered the following issues for consideration during the planning phase: the need to recognize gender and age as key factors in the selection of community leaders; the need to make French interpreters available, when necessary, for those individuals whose participation may otherwise be limited; and the need for research evaluation to focus on police attitudes and behaviours as well. The Project Coordinator informed the funding partner that such an evaluation would not be possible since it is beyond the project’s scope and resources.
A similar presentation was given to the Project Steering Committee on September 7, 2006 with positive reviews. Committee members felt certain that the layout of the work plans and the proposed activities would ensure that the project meets its stated goals. This conviction later set the wheel in motion for the planning of Phase I of the project, scheduled to coincide with the project’s launch on December 15, 2006.
In planning for the launch of the project, several meetings were scheduled and attended by the Project Coordinator, Leslie McDiarmid (South-East Ottawa Community Health Centre), and David Pepper (OPS), as well as some of David’s associates from the OPS. The local police service has been tireless in its efforts to connect the Project Coordinator with both the human and technical resources
- 123 - necessary to plan and execute the upcoming event effectively. Cases in point are meetings held in July 2006, pertaining to a custom data request for the Somali and Caribbean/West Indies communities that were purchased through the OPS, on behalf of the project, from Statistics Canada. Specifically, the group met to confirm the definition of the Caribbean population, the level of geography to be employed in the data, and identify, as well as refine, possible census variables, data costs and budget, and the timeline for receipt of the data.
In August 2006, the group met again to establish a partnership with the Professional Standards Section of the OPS. It would appear that the meeting was a success; the Section has agreed to participate in the project and to make its resources available to the Project Coordinator.
During the month of September 2006 efforts focused on researching, contacting, and securing the participation of potential speakers/presenters for the launch and Phase I of the project. This was a lengthy process primarily because of the time it took for people to respond (or not) to phone calls and e-mail correspondences. This process continued up until the launch of the project.
October 1, 2006 to December 31, 2006
The Project Coordinator spent the month of October following up on leads and connecting with potential presenters to secure their participation for the December 15, 2006 conference; these activities commenced in September 2006. In addition, a considerable amount of time was devoted to designing flyers, advertising, and promoting the event, in mainstream as well as local cultural newspapers and radio/television shows. Event promotion was extended to include health and social service agencies providing programs and services to ethno-racial community members and minority youth.
Coinciding with the above activities, interviews were being held for the position of Research Assistant. As previously mentioned, the Research Assistant originally selected for the position was unable to work on the project until she received her work visa. Since submission of the second Interim Report, the Research Assistant informed the Project Coordinator that she was unable to secure a work visa and would no longer work with the project. In effect, her departure prompted the search for a new Research Assistant.
The hiring committee, which consisted of the Project Coordinator and the Research Project Partner from Carleton University (Dr. Karen Schwartz), interviewed approximately 8-10 candidates. Of these candidates, two were deemed suitable for the job and were hired shortly after. The rationale for hiring two Research Assistants (on a part-time basis), despite the limited budget, was that both interviewees presented strengths considered essential for the timely completion of the research component of the project. It was decided that one
- 124 - researcher would focus on compiling the literature review,45 while the second researcher would assist the Project Coordinator in designing, implementing, and evaluating the questionnaires, and other tasks, as required. With the two Research Assistants on board, the research was now fully underway.
Following the successful hiring of the Research Assistants, the Project Coordinator met with Dr. Karen Schwartz to discuss funding for their positions. It was decided that the Research Assistants would be paid once they completed their tasks; payments will be issued at the end of each month. Within weeks of hiring, one of the Research Assistants relocated to Toronto for a full-time employment opportunity. The second Research Assistant left shortly after.
At the Steering Committee meetings in November, members were informed of the progress being made in preparation for the December 15, 2006 launch. A detailed program plan (see Appendix VI) was tabled, with overwhelming support for its content and layout. However, due to the sensitive nature of the planned topic for discussion at the event, the Committee recommended that the Project Coordinator secure the service of Adrian Harewood, host of the CBC radio show, All In A Day, as moderator for the public panel discussion on racism/racial profiling. The services of Ms. Sarah Onyango, as moderator, were also retained. Both Adrian and Sarah are well-known personalities within the Black community in Ottawa and were kind to donate their time to this project. It was also recommended that simultaneous translation (French/English) be made available during the event. In accordance with this suggestion, both InterpretCan and Advanced Technologies were contracted for the conference.
The Project Coordinator presented the completed Geographic Information System (GIS) data from Statistics Canada to the Committee. The data was purchased (with the assistance of the OPS) in order to identify the City’s “hot spots” in terms of tenuous relations between the community and the OPS, and to determine possible Community Police Centres (CPC’s) and other relevant service providing agencies that could be engaged in the project. Overall, the data will help ensure that the project’s target populations are involved in the initiative.
In November, the Project Coordinator also attended a LEAD (Law Enforcement Aboriginal and Diversity Network) consultation meeting that was held at the Nepean Sportsplex. This meeting provided an opportunity to share information about the current project with local community members and to contribute to the discussion regarding how to help sensitize police officers to the needs of ethno- cultural communities, with the goal of informing the practices of various police services, both locally and nationally.
45 It is important to note that the research component would have no direct impact on the project activities. The purpose of this research is to provide empirical data to support the OPS effort in developing its integrated diversity training program.
- 125 - December was, for the most part, devoted to preparing for and the launch of the project. During the first week and a half, the Project Coordinator engaged in promoting the event; he appeared on television and radio talk shows, corresponded with service-providing agencies, and negotiated with local media outlets for media coverage. Meetings were held with the conference moderators to discuss their roles and the goals of the conference. Correspondences with conference presenters to clarify their roles and expectations were also exchanged via e-mail and over the phone.
On December 15, 2006, the project was successfully launched. Approximately 50 people attended, many of whom were community leaders and allied service providers. Keynote speakers included then Chief of Ottawa Police Service, Vince Bevan, and two prominent Members of Parliament, Paul Dewar from the New Democratic Party and David McGuinty from the Liberal Party. The guest speakers consisted of Dr. Scot Wortley, Associate Professor in the Department of Criminology at the University of Toronto, Mr. Neil Edwards, Director of Investigation and Mediation at the Ontario Human Rights Commission, Mr. Kevin Lee, Executive Director of Scadding Court Community Centre, Ms. Margaret Parsons, Executive Director of the African Canadian Legal Clinic, and Mr. Peter Sterne, then Executive Director of the Centre for Conflict Education and Research at Carleton University.
Results of the evaluation questionnaires from the conference suggest that participants found the conference very informative, well organized (albeit long), and an important step in strengthening relationships among ethno-racial minority communities and the police. A conference report is scheduled for release in the New Year, 2007.
January 1, 2007 to March 31, 2007
Following the successful launch of the Community Policing project, the Project Coordinator began to work on a conference report. This report will outline the activities that took place on December 15, 2006 and discuss the dialogues among the guest presenters and community members in attendance. A copy of the report will be made available shortly.
In January, the Project Coordinator also attended a CBC Editorial Meeting. The meeting primarily focused on media coverage of Black community events and activities in Ottawa. The issues confronting the Black community in Ottawa were discussed, and their implications for news media examined. This meeting was a good opportunity for developing and/or strengthening the relationship among the media and members of the Black community, and provided insight into the issues and challenges the group faces.
February and March were devoted to planning for the OPS mediation workshop (scheduled for April 13, 2007) and conducting outreach to ethno-racial
- 126 - community leaders who may be interested in attending the workshop. At the same time, planning for the police/youth dialogue (scheduled for May 31, 2007) was in progress, and outreach was conducted to youth of colour who may be interested in participating in the dialogue. Meetings were also held with the OPS Diversity and Race Relations Section in order to identify front-line police officers to participate in the dialogue. Together, the mediation workshop and the police/youth dialogue make up Phase II of the project. During the planning of the mediation workshop, a search for a facilitator for the police/youth dialogue was initiated. Two potential facilitators were informally interviewed to assess their suitability; finally, Ms. Conners was hired for this purpose. Public service announcements (PSAs) were placed in both mainstream and local/cultural papers for the mediation workshop and police/youth dialogue.
At the March 22, 2007 Steering Committee meeting, the Project Coordinator and then Manager of Community Services, Leslie McDiarmid, facilitated a focus group discussion regarding the position of the Independent Police Review Director (IPRD), or Bill 103, to be submitted to Scadding Court Community Centre—the lead agency charged with organizing community consultations on this issue in the province of Ontario—in order to provide input to the Attorney General’s Office prior to the selection of the IPRD. A copy of the consultation report that was submitted to the Attorney General’s Office is available on the Centre’s website.46
In March the Project Coordinator was invited to give a presentation to the Board of Directors at the AIDS Committee of Ottawa (ACO) on building inclusive organizations. In his presentation the Coordinator addressed issues related to diversity and their implications for programs and service delivery to ethno-racial communities and individuals—including those who are unable to access available local AIDS services because they are living on the margins of society. Although the presentation was not directly related to the current project, the underlying message was the same: public institutions, including health organizations committed to effective service delivery to all members of society, must ensure that their services reflect and are accessible to non-White individuals. As Ottawa becomes increasingly multicultural, service providers must be attuned to the changing demographics, and take appropriate steps to ensure their staff are equipped with the competencies needed to meet the needs of their service users, especially those belonging to ethno-racial communities.
April 1, 2007 to June 30, 2007
The better part of the month of April was spent on implementing the OPS mediation workshop, the evaluation of the workshop, and the production of a report to be tabled to the Project Steering Committee and the OPS. One of the goals of this workshop was to elicit feedback from the participants regarding
46 See: http://www.scaddingcourt.org/publication/pdflibrary/final%20IPRDreportapril20.pdf
- 127 - steps the OPS can take to improve its complaints process. A total of seven recommendations were initially documented. However, after controlling for recurring themes, three distinct recommendations emerged for consideration by the OPS. These recommendations appear in a report prepared specifically for this purpose.
In May, following the successful completion of the mediation workshop, the Project Coordinator focused on planning and executing the police/youth dialogue. The activity brought together representative youth of colour and front-line police officers from selected areas of the city where police/minority relations remain tenuous. Specifically, youth participants were recruited from the Ledbury/Banff, Russell, Cedarwood, Heron, and Hetherington neighbourhoods. In total, 15 youth and 9 police officers from these neighbouring patrol zones participated in the dialogue.
Based on the evaluations of participants’ in the dialogue, it is clear that the exercise was a positive use of time. Notwithstanding the success of the event, more work is required to further strengthen the relationship between the police and minority youth of colour. Both groups agreed, however, that this dialogue was a step in the right direction, and they welcome similar dialogues in the future. During the months of June and July, the report was compiled for review by the Project Steering Committee.
July 1, 2007 to September 30, 2007
In July revisions to the police/youth dialogue report were made, and a separate recommendation report was developed, based on information derived from the dialogue. Plans were developed for a follow-up activity with the police and youth participants to discuss their participation in the dialogue and to receive feedback from them on the dialogue reports. The Coordinator and members of the Project Steering Committee agreed that the remaining time and resources available for the project would be better spent on conducting the follow-up activity with the police and youth who participated in the dialogue, and to allocate current research funds to the implementation of an overall project evaluation. The Project Coordinator submitted a letter, on behalf of the Project Steering Committee, to the project’s funding partner requesting permission to modify Phase III of the project accordingly.
Aside from work on Phase III of the project and the dialogue reports, the Project Coordinator gave a presentation to the OPS’ new police recruits about the current community policing initiative. The Project Coordinator also gave a similar presentation to members of the OPS Community Police Action Committee (COMPAC) in September, at the request of the OPS Diversity and Race Relations Section.
- 128 -
______
Appendix III: Final Activity Report for Fiscal Year 2006/07 ______
- 129 - ______To: Elizabeth Milan, Project Officer, Department of Canadian Heritage
From: Sulaimon Giwa, South-East Ottawa Community Health Centre
Date of submission: September, 15, 2007
Period covered: April 1, 2006 to March 31, 2007
Re: Final Activity Report for the Fiscal Year 2006-2007 ______
Work Completed to Date
This report covers the period of April 1, 2006 to March 31, 2007. Along with the inception of the Community Policing—A Shared Responsibility project on December 15, 2006, a total of one activity was completed. A considerable amount of time and work went into planning for the launch of the project and Phase I, which took place on the same day.
Phase I of the project was a day-long conference entitled, Racism and Racial Profiling: A Canadian Context. The conference began with opening remarks by the then Chief of Ottawa Police Service (OPS), Vince Bevan. Chief Bevan’s address was followed with speeches by David McGuinty, Liberal Member of Parliament for Ottawa South and Paul Dewar, New Democratic Party Member of Parliament for Ottawa Central. In addition, a high caliber of guest speakers participated in the conference, including representatives from the Department of Criminology at the University of Toronto, the Ontario Human Rights Commission, the African Canadian Legal Clinic, Scadding Court Community Centre in Toronto, the OPS Professional Standards Section, as well as the Centre for Conflict Education and Research at Carleton University, in Ottawa.
The conference included a public panel discussion on racism and racial profiling that was followed by three workshops: Knowing Your Rights and Responsibilities; Looking at Institutional Change: Complaints Process and Procedures; and, finally, Inclusive Consultations and Advocacy.
Approximately 50 people attended the event. Results from the evaluation questionnaires demonstrate that participating community leaders and allied service providers found the conference to be well organized, with a large number of substantive presentations, which ultimately contributed to the success of the event.
- 130 - Problems Encountered
Aside from one or two guest speakers who arrived late and technical glitches that occurred during the presentations, few problems were encountered. Members of the Committee were very helpful in assisting the Project Coordinator with the successful implementation of the activity. The OPS was also instrumental in ensuring the targeted communities (the Somali and Caribbean/West Indies communities) were invited to the conference; they advertised the event on their website and helped to circulate a media release to local media outlets. The small room in which the event took place, however, proved to be an issue, as there was insufficient air circulation during the day. As a result, participants felt somewhat uncomfortable during the presentations. It is advised that a bigger room be secured for future such initiatives.
Work Requiring Completion
Following the launch and Phase I of the project, the Project Coordinator began to work on a Conference Report, scheduled for release in the New Year (2007). In addition, the Project Coordinator began to prepare for the next project activity, The Ottawa Police Service Complaints Process: A Workshop on Mediating Public/Police Complaints—Implications for Communities of Colour, with the planned implementation date of April 13, 2007. The impetus for this activity was derived from one of the December 15, 2006 conference workshops, Looking at Institutional Change: Complaints Process and Procedures. During this workshop, participants indicated their interest in learning more about the OPS complaints process, and the mediation component of the complaints process, in particular. It is noteworthy that this activity was not part of the agreed upon deliverables for the project; however, its relevance and timeliness could not be overlooked.
Assistance Required
In preparation for the April 13, 2007 workshop, assistance will be required in conducting outreach to members of the project’s target populations and in securing a suitable space for the event. At this time, no further assistance is needed.
Timeline Compliance
Both the launch and Phase I of the project took place on their intended date. Plans for The Ottawa Police Service Complaints Process: A Workshop on Mediating Public/Police Complaints—Implications for Communities of Colour are also on track, with an aim to execute the event on its scheduled date, April 13, 2007.
- 131 -
______
Appendix IV: Project Work Plans ______
- 132 - Research Work Plan
Activities Timeframe Output Outcomes Tools & Evaluation
Hire a Research On or before Project Coordinator, in Hire RA; discuss research Assistant (RA) to September 2006 collaboration with Dr. project goals and needs; work with the Karen Schwartz, will have RA sign the work Project Coordinator advertise position by contract most appropriate means
Prepare contract for RA
Research Sept 2006–07 Project Coordinator Identify anti-racism (to be ongoing) and RA to work on training(s) in use by Note: Interim research questions police services in the Reports will be that will eventually three most populous submitted to the result in a research metropolitan cities in Project Steering report Canada: Toronto Police Committee as Service, Vancouver the research Police Department, and progresses Montreal Police Service for improving police- minority relations
Identify police service(s) that have successfully embedded anti-racism training in existing and/or ongoing police trainings and the results
Discuss research implications regarding the integration of diversity into police training. Can such efforts lead to long- term attitudinal and behavioural changes among front-line officers? Which police training(s) could benefit from enhanced integrated diversity content?
IT access, scholarly journals, consultations with various Police Services and NGOs
- 133 - Revised Project Work Plan and Activities
Activities Timeframe Output Outcomes Tools/Evaluation
Questionnaire design for Complete by September Project Coordinator and Evaluation questionnaire the evaluation of 2006 Research Assistant conference and (RA) will collaborate on workshop trainings this effort
1st Half: Morning December 15, 2006 Identify allied services Somali, Caribbean (all day event) providers and community leaders, and Introduction/Context: community leaders from allied service providers racism/racial profiling to the Somali and are better equipped to be led by Dr. Scot Caribbean communities support their community Wortley, U of T and Mr. members / clients in Neil Edwards, OHRC Compile training accessing the OPS materials complaints process Workshop training on effectively community members’ rights & responsibilities to Through a questionnaire be led by Ms. Margaret survey, feedback will be Parsons, ACLC solicited from participants on training effectiveness and areas for possible improvements
2nd Half: Afternoon December 15, 2006 Consult Mr. Lee, Same as above Sergeant Laviolette, Kevin Lee to present on and Mr. Sterne CEAPC project, with regarding their attention given to work availability for this with Toronto Police conference Service
Sergeant Laviolette, OPS, to present on the December 15, 2006 Retain copies of OPS Project Coordinator and Investigation component complaints process – will generate a report with of the police service’s distribute to participants recommendations for complaints process improving Ottawa police complaints process Peter Sterne will focus on the Mediation component of the police service’s complaints process
Peter to lead review of & recommendations for OPS complaints process
Report & Dissemination Complete by January Analyze information Produce a report 2007 gathered from delineating findings questionnaires
Note: Although training will be open to leaders from all multicultural communities, the primary targets remain the same: Somali and Caribbean community leaders and allied service providers. Similarly, for the purpose of this project, the Caribbean community consists of the Jamaican, Haitian, and Trinidadian/Tobago communities. These ethnicities boast the largest number of people from the Caribbean population living in Ottawa.
- 134 - Activities Timeframe Output Outcomes Tools/Evaluation
Questionnaire Complete by Project Coordinator Evaluation questionnaires design for the February and Research evaluation of 2007 Assistant to workshop/dialogue collaborate on these efforts
Facilitate a May 2007 OPS (on behalf of Outcomes dialogue between SEOCHC) to a select number of purchase custom Enhance civic participation of police officers and 3 hours data tabulations for minority youth; increase police minority youth dialogue Somali/Caribbean cultural competencies; address residing and or session communities from issues of racism and congregating in Statistics Canada stereotyping through shared areas considered (approx. $1,000) dialogue to be “hot spots” for police Identify “hot spots” Project Coordinator will produce surveillance for both target a report delineating findings groups from questionnaires and follow- Note: Have youth ups and police identify In consultation with specific incidents Diversity and Race Evaluation that occurred, Relations, OPS, which they believe identify patrol zones Survey questionnaire will be could have been and officers to administered to assess better handled. engage in dialogue usefulness of forum for police Examples will be and youth participants included in the Solicit help from report that will be appropriate project Follow-Up #1 provided to the partners for OPS in relation to reaching Somali In a focus group type setting, their ongoing and Caribbean youth will reflect on their integrated youth participation in the dialogue and diversity training. have opportunity to provide feedback on dialogue and recommendation reports generated from the event
Follow-Up #2
Same as follow-up number 1
Report & Complete by Project Coordinator Dissemination June 2007 will analyze information gathered from questionnaires and follow-ups
- 135 -
______
Appendix V: Project Meeting Minutes ______
- 136 - Minutes #1
Steering Committee Meeting: Focus and Direction of the Community Policing Project
June 13, 2006 ______
Present: Abdirizak Karod, Executive Director, Somali Centre for Family Services David Pepper, Director, Community Development, Ottawa Police Service Leslie McDiarmid, Manager, Community Services, SEOCHC47 Mark Zarecki, Executive Director, Jewish Family Services of Ottawa
Regrets: Karen Schwartz, Professor, Carleton University School of Social Work Kelli Tonner, Programs Coordinator, Community Services, SEOCHC
Minutes: Sulaimon Giwa, Project Coordinator, Community Policing, SEOCHC ______
The partners agreed, in principle, that the existing project proposal required re- working as it was written over two years ago and did not reflect the present context of the Ottawa Police Service (OPS).
Discussion revolved around how to make adjustments to the proposal and adapt the educational component of the project to the recently adopted approach of the OPS, which seeks to integrate diversity training into the general police training. This long term approach will be more effective than one-time courses or dedicating portions of police recruit training that cannot be applied easily to specific work situations.
The following suggestions were made to accomplish these changes. The modified project plans were divided into three phases:
Phase I
The first phase involves creating a space for dialogue among a group of front-line police officers and (male) youths residing in geographical areas considered to be “hot spot” for police surveillance and criminal activities. It is envisioned that this dialogue will lead to a breaking down of barriers and misconceptions between these groups, paving the way for better police/minority youth relationships. The
47 The acronym SEOCHC is used throughout in reference to South-East Ottawa Community Health Centre.
- 137 - project partners felt strongly that the focus of this activity should be on male youth of colour, since this group is most likely to come in conflict with the police and to experience racial profiling; they are also the least likely to report incidents of racial discrimination by the police.
At the next meeting, the Committee will discuss the context in which this dialogue will occur (forum, interviews, on the street, etc).
Phase II
The second phase of the project involves soliciting feedback from the participating officers and, where possible, the youth following their joint dialogue. It is hoped that the officers and the youth will be able to make recommendations and/or suggestions for action towards adding diversity education into existing, targeted training opportunities. The following are possible questions that may be used to facilitate the process: (1) What effect has the dialogue had on individual officers and how, if at all, has the discussion changed their perception of the youth they encounter on a regular basis? (2) What lessons (about police/minority relations) emerged from the dialogue and how can they be integrated into the broader police diversity training? (3) What concrete actions/steps can be taken to reduce racism, to destabilize the offensive/defensive stance of police officers and communities of colour, and to regain the trust of minority youth and communities in the police?
Phase III
There are two stages in the third phase of the project. The first stage involves identifying an undetermined number of community leaders (from the Somali and Arab communities), and allied service providers who serve these communities, and providing them with training on community members’ rights and responsibilities, the concept of community policing, and police complaints policies and procedures. The purpose of this training will be to provide community leaders and service providers with the tools they need to support, advocate, and assist male youth of colour effectively in navigating the OPS complaints system. Although the focus is primarily on male youth of colour, both the community leaders and allied service providers will be able, in principle, to provide support to broader communities.
The second stage involves organizing information/training sessions that will be open to all members of the Somali and Arab communities. Similar to the training that will be provided to the community leaders and service providers, community members will also receive training on community members’ rights and responsibilities, community policing, and police complaints policies and procedures. Following each session, a meet and greet of the community leaders and service providers will take place.
- 138 - It was agreed that rather than including representation from three or more ethno- racial groups, the project will only focus on two groups: the Somali and Arab communities. Furthermore, the project will focus chiefly on male youth between the ages of 14-30, as they are most likely to come in contact with the police. Every effort will be made to solicit representation from community youth leaders and, if possible, community leaders from both genders. Effort will be made to ensure that the majority of community members trained reflect the communities they serve.
The next Steering Committee meeting will take place on July 12, 2006 at the South-East Ottawa Community Health Centre (SEOCHC); the meeting room will be announced in advance of the date.
Meeting Adjourned
- 139 - Minutes # 2
Steering Committee Meeting Community Policing Project
July 12, 2006 ______
Present: Abdirizak Karod, Executive Director, Somali Centre for Family Services David Pepper, Director, Community Development, Ottawa Police Service Karen Schwartz, Professor, Carleton University School of Social Work Leslie McDiarmid, Manager, Community Services, SEOCHC Mark Zarecki, Executive Director, Jewish Family Services of Ottawa
Minutes: Sulaimon Giwa, Project Coordinator, Community Policing, SEOCHC ______
Sulaimon moved that the meeting’s agenda be approved. All agreed on the condition that Leslie’s suggestion be integrated into point 5 on the list of items: Decisions/Directions/Suggestions. Specifically, Leslie requested that item 5 reflect that the Committee will devise a time frame for the revised project activities. The project partners agreed with this recommendation and the agenda was conceded.
The motion for the approval of June 13, 2006 minutes was also passed with no amendments.
Leslie provided the Committee with an update of her discussions with the project’s funding partner (Kass) around possible modifications to the project activities and what challenges, if any, this would generate. According to Leslie, Kass does not object to modifying the project activities to reflect the present context of the Ottawa Police Service (OPS) and the multicultural communities better. However, Leslie did stress that Kass does not want the project outcomes to change from their original conception.
Sulaimon tabled a copy of the “Revised Project Outcomes and Activities” to the Committee (see pages 142-143). Members were asked to review and comment on the document before it is forwarded to Kass. The first item in the “Activities” section was debated about at length, following David’s comment that the Arab community in Ottawa, and throughout Canada, is not as concerned and/or affected by local police activities as the Black community. Naturally, this raised the question of why the Arab community was initially selected as one of the target groups for the project. After an extensive discussion, the project partners
- 140 - agreed that the target groups are to include members of the Somali and Caribbean/West Indies communities.
The subsequent discussion focused on whether the educational workshops for community leaders and allied service providers from the targeted communities should be expanded to include community leaders, from diverse neighbourhoods and ethno-racial groups, who feel that their communities have been negatively impacted by police (in)actions, and would benefit from this training. The partners agreed to the expansion, on the condition that the project does not lose sight of its primary target populations, namely the Somali and Caribbean/West Indies communities.
Karen suggested that the second last item on the “Project Activities” list be extended to include what the OPS will do with the information the dialogue between the officers and youth generates. As well, she recommended that the item include whether or not the community will be consulted during the evaluation period. She proposed that the paragraph be reworded as follow:
“Solicit feedback from dialogue participants and partners to provide information and content for Ottawa Police Service ongoing integrated diversity training; create a system of monitoring that both ensures scenarios and/or outcomes of the dialogue are being implemented for best practices, and which integrates the community in the evaluation process.”
The last major discussion centered on how and which allied service providers will be selected to participate in the project. Each of the project partners had a different vision of how this could be accomplished. However, Mark’s suggestion that the Committee select service providers from within the target communities prevailed. Sulaimon seconded this suggestion adding that they first determine where the “hot spots” are in the Ottawa area (with the aid of a geographical map locator) and where members of the target groups congregate. Once the “hot spots” have been identified, Marks suggestion should then be put into action. In this manner, the Committee can be certain that it will reach the target groups for the project.
It was agreed that Sulaimon bring a detailed work plan to the next Committee meeting scheduled for September 7, 2006 from 2-4 p.m. at the Jewish Family Services of Ottawa, 2255 Carling Avenue, Suite 301.
***
Revised Project Outcomes and Activities
The following outlines the revised key project outcomes and activities for the Community Policing—A Shared Responsibility project.
- 141 - Outcomes:
1. To better equip ethno-racial community members to deal effectively with complaints and concerns about police services, by increasing the capacity of the organizations mandated to serve them relative to police policies and procedures.
2. To better equip multicultural allied service providers to assist and support members of ethno-racial minority communities in understanding and filing complaints with the OPS.
3. To build stronger relationships and more frequent partnerships among the ethno-racial minority communities and the OPS.
Activities:
. Educational and information workshops for the leaders of at least two ethno-racial communities (the Somali and Arab communities), and multicultural allied service providers. Workshops’ contents are to include: community members’ rights and responsibilities and complaints policies and procedures (with presentation by Scadding Court Community Centre on the Community Education and Access to Police Complaints Demonstration Project).
. An examination of the OPS complaints process by ethno-racial community leaders and multicultural allied service providers, in collaboration with the OPS Professional Standards Section; making recommendations for the improvement of access to the complaints process by individual complainants and working relationships among community advocates and the OPS Professional Standards Section.
. A dialogue on racism and racial profiling among a select number of front- line police officers and minority youth residing in areas that are considered “hot spots” for police surveillance and crime.
. Obtaining feedback from dialogue participants and partners to provide information and content for the development of the OPS integrated diversity training program.
. A monitoring system that both ensure scenarios and/or outcomes of the dialogue are being implemented for best practices and integrate the community in the evaluation process.
. Creating opportunities for ongoing consultation among the OPS and the Community Policing Coordinator, and other partners to continue improving the integrated approach of the OPS’ diversity training.
Meeting Adjourned
- 142 - Minutes # 3
Steering Committee Meeting Community Policing Project
September 7, 2006 ______
Present: Abdirizak Karod, Executive Director, Somali Centre for Family Services Karen Schwartz, Professor, Carleton University School of Social Work Leslie McDiarmid, Manager, Community Services, SEOCHC Mark Zarecki, Executive Director, Jewish Family Services of Ottawa John Mbakulo, Diversity and Race Relations, Ottawa Police Service
Regrets: David Pepper, Director, Community Development, Ottawa Police Service
Minutes: Sulaimon Giwa, Project Coordinator, Community Policing, SEOCHC ______
Leslie moved that the meeting’s agenda be approved. All agreed with no additions and/or changes. Ms. Sethi’s introduction to the Committee members was postponed until the next Committee meeting. As well, for the moment, work on the research component of the project has been suspended until the beginning of October 2006.
The motion for the approval of July 12, 2006 minutes was conceded with no revisions.
Leslie provided the Committee with an update of the August 23, 2006 meeting with Kass (project funding partner). The meeting was an opportunity for Kass to meet with Sulaimon, and to discuss the project and research plans, as well as changes made to the planned project activities. Leslie reported that the meeting went well; Kass had only minor comments to make. The most notable of the comments were (1) the Committee must recognize gender and age as key factors in the selection of participating community leaders; (2) the Committee must make French interpreters available, when necessary, to those individuals whose participation may otherwise be limited; (3) the Committee in its research evaluation must also focus on police attitudes and behaviours. On this point, Leslie pointed out that Sulaimon did a good job in explaining to Kass why such evaluation is not possible. In the end, Kass approved both the project and the research plans, and the project was given the green light. It should be noted that Kass was invited to attend today’s meeting; he said that he would if his schedule permitted.
- 143 - Sulaimon presented the project work plans to the Committee. Overall, members agreed with the layout of the plans and the activities that will be undertaken to achieve the project goals. Although there were no concerns about the content of the work plans per se, a few points were made. On the specifics of activity two, Mark suggested that instead of just being a dialogue between youth and officers, this is a good opportunity to also “sell” the Ottawa Police Service (OPS) as a viable career choice. Additionally, Constable Mbakulo noted that caution should be taken when approaching officers about participating in a dialogue. He went on to suggest that the “packaging” of such a request should be done in a way that presents the objective of the invitation not to identify officers resistant to change/diversity, but to pool officers that will help the project reach its goals. He recommended that police middle-managers be consulted and asked to identify officers they believe would contribute significantly to the project. As a point of clarification, Karen explained that the packaging and the process by which officers are selected will be lead by David, since he is the lead OPS representative on the Committee. The decision regarding which officers will participate in the dialogue will not be based on whether the officers are resistant to change and/or diversity, but on what they can contribute to the discussion.
Sulaimon updated the Committee about the telephone conversation he recently had with Suzanne Burkhardt from Scadding Court in his effort to book Leila as an instructor for the tentative December training workshop on the police complaints process. Suzanne notified him that Leila is currently on maternity leave and that the organization is presently looking for someone to take over the Community Education and Access to Police Complaints Demonstration (CEAPC) project. Suzanne promised to get back to Sulaimon upon the return of the head manager on September 26, 2006.
The Project Coordinator asked the Committee to clarify whether the training on community members’ rights and responsibilities is to be a general overview of citizens’ rights and responsibilities or if it is meant to focus on citizens’ rights and responsibilities as they pertain to involvement with the police. The project partners decided that the training should focus on a general overview; workshop participants will be generally informed about their rights and responsibilities, for example, what should one do if a police officer comes to your home and wants to come in—should you let him/her in or not?
As a follow-up to the July meeting, the Committee discussed how many community leaders and allied service providers should be invited to participate in the project, and how these individuals will be selected. It is still not clear how many people will be selected from both target groups. What is clear, however, is that gender and age will be key factors for consideration in the selection of community leaders. Project partners have been asked to submit the names of possible community leader participants and, where applicable, allied service providers to the Project Coordinator as soon as possible. In addition results from the Geographic Information System (GIS) analysis will be used to identify
- 144 - community agencies from which service providers will be selected. Please note that the OPS has ordered the GIS data from Statistics Canada; it will be delivered in four to six weeks. The cost of the data is estimated at $1,000.
Leslie pointed out that the Department of Heritage has yet to forward the funds that are to be allocated to the project partners, but indicated that the partners are free to give their invoices to her. The partners agreed to produce invoices only when the funds become available. Leslie agreed to write a cheque payable to Ms. Sethi (the Research Assistant), once Karen has submitted the proof of her being hired.
The last item for discussion pertained to the clarification and definition of the term “Caribbean community;” for the purpose of this project it consists of Jamaicans, Haitians, West Indians, and Trinidadians/Tobagonians. This decision is based on the 2001 Statistics Canada Census, which shows that these four groups are the largest among the Caribbean communities living in Ottawa. It should be noted that the Committee is no longer considering the Cuban community as a target population, due to its small population size.
NOTE: Contrary to the definition of the Caribbean offered above, the Caribbean community will now be referred to as the Caribbean/West Indies community. This change is made to reflect the fact that this community is made up of individuals from a number of nation/states (islands), and the people from the West Indies are not considered an independent target population. Thus, for the purpose of this project, Jamaicans, Haitians, and Trinidadians/Tobagonians will comprise the Caribbean/West Indies community.
Mark suggested that the Committee extend an invitation to leaders from the target populations (including the Somali community), in order to get their support for the project. So far, Sulaimon has recommended that Mr. Carl Nicholson be consulted in regard to the Jamaican community. Mark indicated that he will follow-up on this suggestion during his meeting with Mr. Nicholson on September 8, 2006.
The next Committee meeting is scheduled for November 8, 2006 from 2-4 p.m. at the Jewish Family Services of Ottawa, 2255 Carling Avenue, Suite 301.
Meeting Adjourned
- 145 - Minutes # 4
Revised
Steering Committee Meeting Community Policing Project
November 8, 2006 ______
Present: Abdirizak Karod, Executive Director, Somali Centre for Family Services Karen Schwartz, Professor, Carleton University School of Social Work Leslie McDiarmid, Manager, Community Services, SEOCHC Mark Zarecki, Executive Director, Jewish Family Services of Ottawa Michael Assivero, President, Trinidad/Tobago Association of Ottawa Evalt Lemours, Haitian Community, Groupe Anti-Délinquance En Poésie Elizabeth Milan, Program Officer, Department of Canadian Heritage
Regrets: David Pepper, Director, Community Development, Ottawa Police Service
Minutes: Sulaimon Giwa, Project Coordinator, Community Policing, SEOCHC ______
The meeting commenced with the introduction of all members in attendance, including today representatives from the Trinidad/Tobago and Haitian communities. Following this, Leslie motioned for the approval of the agenda. Karen seconded; all agreed. The motion for the approval of the September 7, 2006 minutes was conceded with no revisions.
Sulaimon conveyed David’s regrets to the Committee. He informed the members about his discussion with David regarding the activities planned for the launch of the project and Phase I. Sulaimon noted that David had some concerns around the content of the activities. Following a discussion on the issue, the Committee agreed that: (1) the presenters be re-informed of the reason(s) for their invitation, i.e., to share their professional expertise, thus contributing to the success of the project; (2) that no changes be made to the identified presenters. The Committee is confident regarding the caliber of the speakers that have been selected; and (3) that Sulaimon contact David to inquire if Chief Bevan, Deputy Hill, or another senior manager from the Ottawa Police Service (OPS) would be interested in giving the opening address on the day of the event.
Sulaimon provided the Committee with a progress report on the project. First, he noted that the research phase of the project has been temporarily suspended
- 146 - because the Research Assistant (RA) was unable to secure an extension on her visa. Accordingly, he is searching for a new RA. Members were also informed of the steady progress being made with preparations for the launch of the project and Phase I. Sulaimon tabled a detailed program plan, which received overwhelming support for its content and layout. Ms. Milan and Mr. Karod both suggested that Sulaimon secure the services of Adrian Harewood, Host of CBC’s radio program All In A Day, for the public panel discussion on racism/racial profiling. It is anticipated that this session will be challenging. In discussing the expected number of participants at the event, the Committee concluded that a maximum of 50 people would be ideal. Leslie suggested that we look into a new location for the event, as the reserved spot at the South-East Ottawa Community Health Centre (SEOCHC) will not be large enough for all of the attendees and the equipment for the translation services. Furthermore, Leslie noted that a change in the budget will be required, given that a simultaneous translation service will be provided in English and French. This budget change is subject to approval by the funding partner (Leslie has since confirmed the change was approved).
The Committee later focused its attention on identifying community leaders and allied service providers for participation in the conference. It was decided that members will have until November 24, 2006 to present the names and contact information of possible individuals, including youth to involve in the conference. All information should be forwarded to the Project Coordinator. At the next meeting, the Committee will review the list, and identify and amend any gaps.
Sulaimon presented the Committee with the completed GIS data from Statistics Canada. The data was purchased, with assistance from the OPS, in order to help identify the locations most frequented by minority (male) youth and the Community Police Centers (CPC) and agencies/centres most likely to come in contact with the youth. More importantly, though, the data will help ensure that the project’s target populations are involved in the initiative. An invoice for the purchase-of-service is forthcoming.
As a final point, Sulaimon noted that he had been meeting with the owner/designer of Popcorn Interactive, Micheal Cherun, about possibly designing a website for the project. It is envisioned that the website will serve as an accessible portal to those interested in learning about the initiative and its outcomes. While the idea, in principle, was well received, further work on this activity has been suspended due to lack of funds.
Leslie suggested that the Committee meet before December 15, 2006. The next meeting is scheduled for November 29, 2006, from 2-4 p.m. at the Somali Centre for Family Services, 1719 Bank Street, Suite 200.
Meeting Adjourned
- 147 - Minutes # 5
Steering Committee Meeting Community Policing Project
November 29, 2006 ______
Present: Abdirizak Karod, Executive Director, Somali Centre for Family Services Karen Schwartz, Professor, Carleton University School of Social Work Leslie McDiarmid, Manager, Community Services, SEOCHC Mark Zarecki, Executive Director, Jewish Family Services of Ottawa Michael Assivero, President, Trinidad/Tobago Association of Ottawa Evalt Lemours, Haitian Community, Groupe Anti-Délinquance En Poésie Jocelyn Constant, Haitian Community David Pepper, Director, Community Development, Ottawa Police Service John Mbakulo, Diversity & Race Relations, Ottawa Police Service Elizabeth Milan, Program Officer, Department of Canadian Heritage Mohamed Abdi-Hagan, Community Connections, SEOCHC
Minutes: Sulaimon Giwa, Project Coordinator, Community Policing, SEOCHC ______
The meeting began with the introduction of all members in attendance, followed by Leslie’s motion for the approval of the agenda, which was seconded by Karen, and approved by all.
David informed the Committee that the minutes from the previous meeting, on November 8, did not capture his concerns regarding the content of the plans for the December 15, 2006 event. David then took the opportunity to explain his original concerns. Karen motioned that the minutes be approved on the condition that David’s position be accurately documented in the minutes. Mr. Karod seconded the motion, and the minutes were approved.
Sulaimon provided the Committee with an update of the progress being made in preparation for the launch of the project and Phase I, scheduled for December 15, 2006. Prior to that, he reminded everyone that the purpose of today’s meeting is to review the names of the community leaders and allied service providers that have been invited to participate in the event, and to identify those individuals and agencies that have yet to be approached. A considerable amount of time was spent on this activity; the Committee recommended that Sulaimon follow-up with individuals and agencies that have already been contacted but have not confirmed their participation in the event. David stated that he has a few people in mind that he would like to invite; he agreed to provide Sulaimon with
- 148 - their names and contact information. The Committee strongly recommended that there be representation from youth at the event as well. In the end, it was concluded that the names and contact information for all potential participants should be forwarded to Sulaimon by December 6, 2006, allowing for him time to follow-up with each of them.
Sulaimon informed the Committee that the research component of the project is back on track, following the successful hiring of two research assistants: Barry George and Robert Marshall. Barry’s role is to work with the Project Coordinator to develop evaluation questionnaires and the evaluation for the overall project. Robert has been hired for three months to conduct a literature review.
Leslie reported that Sulaimon contacted the Recreation Association Centre and unfortunately no conference space was available. A call was also made to the Congress Centre, but the idea of securing a space there was abandoned due to its high prices. Thus, it was decided that the event will take place at the originally planned location: South-East Ottawa Community Health Centre.
The issue of media presence (or lack thereof) at the event was brought up. While Sulaimon has been trying to get media attention for the event, little progress has been made. Sulaimon suggested that the Ottawa Police Service (OPS) send a media release to the news stations on behalf of the project, as they are more likely to respond to a notice from the City’s police service. David suggested that Sulaimon draft a media release and connect with the OPS media services for the purpose of content structuring, prior to the release being sent out.
The next Steering Committee meeting has been scheduled for January 18, 2007, at the Jewish Family Services of Ottawa, 2255 Carling Avenue, Suite 301.
Meeting Adjourned
- 149 - Minutes # 6
Steering Committee Meeting Community Policing Project
January 18, 2007 ______
Present: Karen Schwartz, Professor, Carleton University School of Social Work Leslie McDiarmid, Manager, Community Services, SEOCHC Mark Zarecki, Executive Director, Jewish Family Services of Ottawa Michael Assivero, President, Trinidad/Tobago Association of Ottawa Evalt Lemours, Haitian Community, Groupe Anti-Délinquance En Poésie John Mbakulo, Diversity & Race Relations, Ottawa Police Service Elizabeth Milan, Program Officer, Department of Canadian Heritage Barry George, Research Assistant, Community Policing, SEOCHC
Regrets: Abdirizak Karod, Executive Director, Somali Centre for Family Services Jocelyn Constant, Haitian Community David Pepper, Director, Community Development, Ottawa Police Service
Minutes: Sulaimon Giwa, Project Coordinator, Community Policing, SEOCHC ______
The meeting began with the introduction of all members in attendance. This was followed by Sulaimon’s motion for the approval of the agenda, which was unanimously approved by the Committee. Leslie motioned for the approval of the revised minutes from the November 8 meeting and the minutes from the November 29 meeting; Karen seconded, all approved with no further changes.
Sulaimon facilitated a discussion about the December 15, 2006 conference. Committee members were asked to provide feedback regarding what worked and what did not work at the event. Overall, the responses were balanced. Collectively, the Committee felt that the conference was an ambitious undertaking, with excellent content for participants and guest speakers to reflect on. They found the organization of the event impressive, as was the caliber of speakers that were invited to speak at the event. Conversely, Committee members stated that the event should have been scheduled on a day other than Friday, and should have been shorter in duration (not all day). Committee members also felt that the event participants would have benefited from a bigger, more open space. Perhaps, this may have increased audience participation. One member called for better control around guest speakers appearing on time for their presentations and not speaking beyond the agreed time limit. This is a valid
- 150 - point considering that a couple of the guest speakers did not arrive on time and spoke beyond their allotted time. As a result, the conference exceeded its scheduled time. Nevertheless, other Committee members stated that these sort of challenges are beyond the organizer’s control and are typical of most conferences. In reflecting on the Committee’s decision to invite youth to the conference, it is now believed that the conference was not the right milieu for the young group. At the same time, a long but healthy discussion was shared by all who participated in the event.
Sulaimon and Barry provided an overview of the results from the survey questionnaires that were completed at the conference.
In response to the December 15, 2006 conference, the idea of hosting a half-day workshop on the Ottawa Police Service (OPS) complaints/mediation process was deliberated. Several of the conference participants had indicated an interest in learning more about the mediation component of the police services complaints process. Conference participants seemed both energized and guarded about the possible benefits and disadvantages of this practice. One of their concerns was how a mediator can be impartial when he/she has been hired and is paid by the police services. In other words, is it reasonable to expect that the community will benefit from mediation when it is institutionally driven by the status quo? The Committee decided that Sulaimon should explore the possibility of the OPS and the South-East Ottawa Community Health Centre holding a joint workshop on the Alternative Dispute Resolution process.
Leslie raised the issue of honourariums and wanted to know if community leaders were promised financial incentives for their participation in the conference; if so, how much was promised? According to the members at the table, no promises were made to any of the community leaders on this matter. Since Mr. Karod was not able to attend the meeting, he was not able to comment regarding the Somali community leaders. Sulaimon was asked to follow-up with Mr. Karod on this point and to report back to Leslie as soon as possible.
Next, Leslie proposed providing honourariums to the community leaders and project partners around the table for their ongoing commitment to the project. All members in attendance, with the exception of representatives from the Trinidad and Tobago and Haitian communities, voted in favour of this proposal. However, the exact amount to be provided was not discussed.
Leslie also stated that honourariums will be provided to the conference guest speakers, including the moderators. The specific amount, again, was not clear. Nevertheless, all were in agreement with this decision. At this point, Leslie reiterated the Committee’s intention to provide honourariums only to community leaders that attended the conference who are non-agency representatives; in other words, community leaders who attended the conference as representatives
- 151 - of an organization will not receive honorariums, as they are already paid by their agencies for attending. There was a general consensus around this point.
It should be noted that for Phase II of the project (the Police/Youth Dialogue), honourariums will not be provided to the participants. Instead, small gifts will be given to the youth and police participants for their contributions. Michael mentioned his connection to a few marketing managers in the music business who may be eager to donate items that could be used as gifts.
Sulaimon informed the Committee about the next phase of the project. Phase II aims to bring together youth of colour and front-line police officers from parts of the city where police-minority relations remain tenuous. The minority youth and the officers will meet for a 3 hour dialogue. Overall, the dialogue will explore how relations between the two groups can be improved. It is suggested that the number of youth be limited to 25, with 5-6 officers; this will advance the depth and flow of the discussion, ensuring each participant has an opportunity to contribute to the discussion.
Some of the Committee members mentioned that a few of the youth were unfairly singled out for talking during the guest presentations at the December 15, 2006 conference, much like some of the adults in the room were. Sulaimon has been asked to contact Mr. Abdirahman from Ridgemont High School to request that he extend the Committee’s apologies to the youth that were singled out.
The next Steering Committee meeting has been scheduled for March 22, 2007, at the Somali Centre for Family Services, 1719 Bank Street, Suite 200.
Meeting Adjourned
- 152 - Minutes # 7
Steering Committee Meeting Community Policing Project
March 22, 2007 ______
Present: Leslie McDiarmid, Manager, Community Services, SEOCHC Mark Zarecki, Executive Director, Jewish Family Services of Ottawa Michael Assivero, President, Trinidad/Tobago Association of Ottawa John Mbakulo, Diversity & Race Relations, Ottawa Police Service Abdirizak Karod, Executive Director, Somali Centre for Family Services David Pepper, Director, Community Development, Ottawa Police Service John Medeiros, Diversity & Race Relations, Ottawa Police Service Stephanie Guilbeault, Diversity & Race Relations, Ottawa Police Service
Regrets: Karen Schwartz, Professor, Carleton University School of Social Work Elizabeth Milan, Program Officer, Department of Canadian Heritage Evalt Lemours, Haitian Community, Groupe Anti-Délinquance En Poésie
Minutes: Sulaimon Giwa, Project Coordinator, Community Policing, SEOCHC ______
Sulaimon opened the meeting with a welcome to all, and Committee members introduced themselves. Constable Mbakulo motioned for the agenda to be approved and Mark Zarecki seconded the motion. The minutes of January 18, 2007 were also approved.
Sulaimon reported to the Committee that he had contacted Abdirahman and requested that the Committee’s apology be extended to the youth that were singled out during the December 15, 2006 conference. The apology was accepted and Abdirahman confirmed that the youth in question will be notified. Mr. Karod noted that this situation has yet to be fully resolved. He proposed that the Committee meet face-to-face with the youth to offer a more formal apology. He will organize this and notify the members of the scheduled meeting date.
Sulaimon noted that no progress has been made in the research component of the project. The current research assistant has been uncooperative in meeting deadlines and producing deliverables. Leslie suggested that an invoice be drafted and presented to him, with expectations that the deliverables will be submitted before payment is made.
- 153 - Sulaimon updated the Committee on the program plans for the mediation workshop scheduled for April 13, 2007. Preparations were going well, and members were supportive in terms of getting the message out to the community and recruiting potential participants. Some members indicated that they had people in mind for the workshop, and they would pass their contact information on to the Project Coordinator.
Leslie reiterated that honourariums, as previously discussed, were to be provided to community leaders who attended the December conference as members of the community and not as representatives of a service agency. It appears that there was a miscommunication on this matter, and some service providers had been informed that they would receive honourariums for their participation in the conference. Consequently, Leslie will write a cheque to the Somali Centre for Family Service, with the view that Mr. Karod and the Somali service providers will decide how the money should be spent.
Sulaimon proposed that the Committee support the motion for the project to purchase the services of a graphic artist for Phase II of the project. In addition to providing visual stimuli during the dialogue, this service will help capture the thoughts and perspectives of the youth during what could be an intimidating activity. Members agreed unanimously that the service be purchased. Given the cost involved, Sulaimon was asked to negotiate with the artist to see if she would be willing to reduce her asking price of $1,600.00. Sulaimon and Leslie will also review the budget for possible funds.
Before the meeting was adjourned, Leslie and Sulaimon facilitated a focus group discussion about the position of the Independent Police Review Director (IPRD). A copy of the document that was submitted to the Attorney General’s Office through the Scadding Court Community Centre is provided below. The next meeting is scheduled for April 19, 2007.
Meeting Adjourned
- 154 - Consultation on the Position of the Independent Police Review Director (IPRD) ______
Focus Group Location: 1719 Bank Street, Suite 200 Focus Group Description: Sector Notes: Sulaimon Giwa E-mail: [email protected] Telephone: (613) 737-7195, ext. 2378 ______
A consultation on the position of the Independent Police Review Director (IPRD) was held on March 22, 2007 at the Somali Centre for Family Services in Ottawa, Canada. The meeting was facilitated by Leslie McDiarmid, Manager, Community Services, South-East Ottawa Community Health Centre (SEOCHC), with notes taken by Sulaimon Giwa, Project Coordinator, Community Policing—A Shared Responsibility, SEOCHC. Seven people attended the consultation, in addition to the facilitator and note taker; the consultation coincided with the monthly meeting of the Project Steering Committee on community policing. The following is a breakdown of the consultation participants:
. (2) Executive Directors—community health and social service agencies; . (1) Director of Corporate Communications—Ottawa Police Service; . (3) Community Outreach Officers—Diversity and Race Relations; and . (1) President of the Trinidad/Tobago Association of Ottawa.
Question # Main Points Other Comments/Notes
Question 1:
What attributes, backgrounds, . Participants did not identify . The hiring of an ex-police officer or affiliations represent a any specific attributes, but was observed as both an conflict of interest for the did caution against the hiring advantage (knowledge of the IPRD in his/her role as of an ex-police officer system) and disadvantage independent overseer of the and/or retired politician. (inability to oversee community police complaints process? Both professional complaints against the police backgrounds and affiliations objectively). are believed to raise potential conflicts of interest for the . There was a shared concern IPRD as overseer of the around the question whether an ideal candidate exists. police complaints process. . Notwithstanding the need to prevent conflicts of interest, participants were not convinced that this problem can be fully mitigated. “Whoever occupies this position, bias or perceived bias will influence their role as IPRD.”
- 155 - Question 2:
What would make the IPRD . Increase the number of . Participants expressed that more and his/her office more decision makers, and avoid than one person should be accessible to you or your limiting decision-making to making decisions concerning agency? the IPRD. police complaints. It was suggested that a committee be . Have multiple office set-up for this purpose, to locations throughout the ensure accountability and province, both in urban and transparency. rural areas; provide multi- lingual/culturally diverse . Participants were divided services. regarding how many offices should exist. But there was . Establish one centrally, consensus on the following: strategically located office for public access. the IPRD office should be staffed with individuals able . Set-up walk-in satellite to provide multi- centres to provide face-to- lingual/culturally diverse face services to the public. services;
the IPRD’s office should be accessible to those living in both urban and rural areas. Question 3:
What personal attributes . Knowledge of justice system, . Personal attributes as they relate and/or qualifications are both legal and administrative. to gender and race were found relevant in hiring the . Ability to speak different to be unimportant criteria in the Independent Police Review selection of an IPRD. languages, with proven Director? cultural sensitivity and a . Participants stressed the
demonstrated history of importance of staffing the professional ethics (“what IPRD’s office with personnel needs to be done to be fair”). that reflect the communities . Education – someone with being served. more than a high school education. Question 4:
What kind of process should . The process should be multi- . An ability to mediate and work be used in selecting/hiring the staged, with more than one in situations “where people see Independent Police Review interview per candidate. things differently” is considered
Director? essential for the job. . The following groups should
be represented on the . Participants were divided on selection committee: the whether the selection process should be by vote or consensus. police, the public (from both urban/rural areas), and the . Although a criminal record was government. cited as reason for excluding . No one with criminal records someone from the selection should be involved. committee, the group was divided around what to do when . Selection of Director should an individual has served his/her be done by vote and/or sentence….Should they be consensus. allowed to participate in the hiring committee or not?
- 156 - Question 5:
What are your expectations . 50% of office resources/ . One participant called for the regarding public education or time should be spent on IPRD’ office to embrace the outreach by the IPRD and community based (popular) SEOCHC’s community his/her office? education, both to the mobilization strategy. general public and targeted communities. . Participants suggested that education and outreach efforts should be grassroots in nature, with particular attention given to issues of concern to youth, low income individuals, and minority communities.
. Participants concluded that education and intervention with youth should start early, and should engage the youth in the learning process. Question 6:
What mechanisms should be . Audit should occur every . The ability of the IPRD and in place to ensure that the year. his/her office to function IPRD and his/her office independently is dependent on function independently and . Streamline the system so that the source of funding. If the are accountable to the public? it is accessible to the general Attorney General’s (AG) office public (e.g., complaints about is fiscally responsible for IPRD should be referred to maintaining the IPRD’s office, judicial review) and not an the AG will want to have a say in ombudsman. the activities/priorities of the . There should not be a tri- IPRD, which could be problematic. party audit system. Either the Ontario Human Rights . The alternative is to have an Commission or an agency (like the IPRD) that is ombudsman should conduct accountable to no one, but audits (not both). equally unfavourable. . Representatives from the Attorney General’s Ontario Civilian Commission on Police Services and the Ontario Human Rights Commission should audit and/or review the IPRD’s performance.
. Adopt a coding system to deal with stalled cases (e.g., cases from rural communities).
- 157 - Minutes # 8
Steering Committee Meeting Community Policing Project
April 19, 2007 ______
Present: Leslie McDiarmid, Manager, Community Services, SEOCHC Karen Schwartz, Professor, Carleton University School of Social Work Michael Assivero, President, Trinidad/Tobago Association of Ottawa Abdirizak Karod, Executive Director, Somali Centre for Family Services Elizabeth Milan, Program Officer, Department of Canadian Heritage Stephanie Guilbeault, Diversity & Race Relations, Ottawa Police Service Calvin Lawrence, Consultant, Police/Race Relations
Regrets: David Pepper, Director, Community Development, Ottawa Police Service Mark Zarecki, Executive Director, Jewish Family Services of Ottawa Evalt Lemours, Haitian Community, Groupe Anti-Délinquance En Poésie
Minutes: Sulaimon Giwa, Project Coordinator, Community Policing, SEOCHC ______
The approval of March 22, 2007 minutes was delayed until May 23rd, 2007, as members did not have adequate time to review them.
Sulaimon provided Committee members with a verbal assessment of the mediation workshop that was scheduled for and implemented on April 13, 2007. A report was also tabled that outlined the results of the workshop evaluation questionnaires and the recommendations made to the Ottawa Police Service (OPS) for consideration, with regards to its complaints process.
The planning of Phase II of the project, a dialogue among front-line police officers and youth of colour, was discussed in depth. The following decisions were made: The dialogue will take place on May 31, 2007 from 4:00 p.m. until 7:30 p.m. (with three hours reserved for the dialogue); the event location is to be determined. The Committee recommended that Sulaimon look into reserving a space at the YMCA/YWCA on Argyle Street. Members also suggested that the information flyer on the event be made more youth-friendly, as the current leaflet is overly formal.
Leslie encouraged members to share their understanding of the goals of Phase II, in order to ensure consistency among Committee members with regards to the
- 158 - project goals, and to address any pressing concerns they may have. The following are the shared project activity goals as discussed: an opportunity for minority youth and police to share real-life situations and/or experiences that did not go well; a discussion into why the situation did not go well; identification of concrete techniques/behaviours that officers may employ to improve their dealings with youth of colour, hopefully resulting in better police/minority youth relations.
There was some discussion about how the Diversity and Race Relations Section (DRR) of the OPS will select the necessary officers for the dialogue. In keeping with the earlier suggestions of David and the then Constable Mbakulo, Leslie reiterated the need to pool officers who would normally attend race relations events, but, more importantly, to encourage those who have different opinions and are willing to share those opinions as well. The success of this phase is dependent on the diversity of its participants and their willingness to share their experiences. Sulaimon and Constable Guilbeault noted their intention to meet and discuss this matter in more detail.
The principal goal of Phase II is to inform the OPS integrated diversity training program. Sulaimon, however, raised the concern that the narratives shared in the dialogue will not lend themselves to additional aspects of police training, such as airport enforcement, realities that may be outside of the participating youth’s experiences. Thus, it was suggested that the facilitator generate scenarios for the youth to engage with during the consultation.
Sulaimon recommended that the Committee put aside some funds to hire a professional note taker for the dialogue. There was a general consensus among members that this is a priority, given the particulars of the upcoming activity. Sulaimon confirmed his intention to look into available professional note-taking services in the Ottawa region. The final report will be thematically organized.
Sulaimon informed the Committee that Sarah, the graphic artist, has agreed to reduce her fees to $1,400.00 (a difference of $200.00). Leslie confirmed that the project is able to allocate the sum for this purpose.
Mr. Lawrence, a race relations consultant, was invited to the meeting in order to discuss his possible contribution to the project, in Phase II in particular. Following a discussion of Mr. Lawrence’s credentials, it was clear that some Committee members had reservations about his ability to engage the youth capably. Members agreed to reflect further on Mr. Lawrence’s involvement prior to making a decision. The next meeting was scheduled for May 23, 2007, from 1:30 p.m. until 3:00 p.m. at the South-East Ottawa Community Health Centre.
Meeting Adjourned
- 159 - Minutes # 9
Steering Committee Meeting Community Policing Project
May 23, 2007 ______
Present: Leslie McDiarmid, Manager, Community Services, SEOCHC Elizabeth Milan, Program Officer, Department of Canadian Heritage Stephanie Guilbeault, Diversity & Race Relations, Ottawa Police Service John Medeiros, Diversity & Race Relations, Ottawa Police Service
Regrets: David Pepper, Director, Community Development, Ottawa Police Service Mark Zarecki, Executive Director, Jewish Family Services of Ottawa Evalt Lemours, Haitian Community, Groupe Anti-Délinquance En Poésie Karen Schwartz, Professor, Carleton University School of Social Work Michael Assivero, President, Trinidad/Tobago Association of Ottawa Abdirizak Karod, Executive Director, Somali Centre for Family Services
Minutes: Sulaimon Giwa, Project Coordinator, Community Policing, SEOCHC ______
Sulaimon opened the meeting with a welcome to all, and noted that the meeting will be short due to the limited number of agenda items. The agenda was approved, and an update on the research literature review was included as an agenda item. Constable Guilbeault motioned for the approval of the minutes of the March 22 and April 19, 2007 meetings; Leslie seconded the motion on the condition that the recommendations’ component of the mediation workshop report be rewritten.
Sulaimon provided an update concerning the plans for the police/youth dialogue. He stated that the police officers who will participate in the dialogue have been identified and a pre-dialogue session is scheduled for Tuesday, May 29, 2007. However, Sulaimon raised the concern that he has yet to obtain a final list of the youth who will be participating, and cautioned that the event may have to be postponed if the youth’s participation is not confirmed as soon as possible. The Project Coordinator has recruited 9 youth, and Committee members were encouraged to identify the names of service providers that should be consulted to recruit additional participants. Sulaimon agreed to follow-up with them.
Constable Guilbeault asked if it was appropriate for her to attend the police/youth dialogue. The group was unanimous in its decision that she should, citing the
- 160 - need for representation and support for both the officers and youth involved the event. It was highlighted that Mr. Karod and Kelli Tonner will be on-site to provide support to the youth if necessary. As such, it is appropriate that the officers have a similar support system available to them.
Staff Sergeant Medeiros drew attention to the caliber of the officers who will be participating in the dialogue, noting that the “officers are excellent, capable, hardworking, and articulate individuals” and will contribute positively to the discussion. The officers, he commented, represent a cross-section of the Service, and have strong police/community knowledge.
Sulaimon briefly noted that he and Leslie met with Deborah Conners on May 3, 2007 to discuss her suitability to facilitate the police/youth dialogue. Leslie and Sulaimon were confident that she is the right person for the job, and Deborah was hired.
Sulaimon provided a brief update on the literature review, noting that very little has been done to date. He raised concern about the current research assistant who has proven to be unreliable. The research assistant responsible for the literature review moved to Toronto since he has been unable to secure a full-time job in Ottawa. While he agreed to produce the literature review, it never materialized. Sulaimon expressed concern that the research assistant is also not meeting deadlines and he sees no reason to retain his services.
Leslie suggested that the remaining research assistant be let go as soon as possible. Constable Guilbeault offered to provide Sulaimon with the name of another person who may be interested and available for the job. Sulaimon has since followed up with this individual and he is currently employed elsewhere and is unavailable.
Before the meeting ended, Leslie announced that Better Beginners—Better Future will be holding its annual community celebration on June 21, 2007 from 3 p.m. until 6 p.m. Members are encouraged to participate in the event and to contact Leslie for event details. The next meeting is scheduled for June 22, 2007 from 9:00 a.m. until 11:00 a.m. at the South-East Ottawa Community Health Centre.
Meeting Adjourned
- 161 - Minutes # 10
Steering Committee Meeting Community Policing Project
June 22, 2007 ______
Present: Leslie McDiarmid, Manager, Community Services, SEOCHC Elizabeth Milan, Program Officer, Department of Canadian Heritage Stephanie Guilbeault, Diversity & Race Relations, Ottawa Police Service David Pepper, Director, Community Development, Ottawa Police Service Abdirizak Karod, Executive Director, Somali Centre for Family Services Mark Zarecki, Executive Director, Jewish Family Services of Ottawa Michael Assivero, President, Trinidad/Tobago Association of Ottawa Kelli Tonner, Programs Coordinator, Community Services, SEOCHC Abdirahman Hilowle, Student Counsellor, Ridgemont High School Deborah Conners, Organization Consultant
Regrets: Evalt Lemours, Haitian Community, Groupe Anti-Délinquance En Poésie Karen Schwartz, Professor, Carleton University School of Social Work John Medeiros, Diversity & Race Relations, Ottawa Police Service
Minutes: Sulaimon Giwa, Project Coordinator, Community Policing, SEOCHC ______
Sulaimon opened the meeting with a welcome to all, followed by an introduction of the attendees. Sulaimon motioned that the meeting’s agenda and the minutes of the previous meeting be approved; Leslie seconded the motion, and there was no opposition.
Deborah and Sulaimon provided an overview of the goals of the police/youth dialogue, outlined what was achieved, and pointed out the challenges inherent in working with the officers and the youth. Deborah and Sulaimon also presented their recommendations for future action. This resulted in a long discussion about some of the obstacles still impeding police/minority youth relations. Group members disagreed on the ways the police could be held accountable for their (mis)treatment of minority youth. On the one hand, some suggested that overcoming the troubled relationship between the Ottawa police and minority youth/communities must begin with an acknowledgment by the Service that it engages in racist practices. Without such a declaration, they argued, the likelihood of a change in behaviour (on both sides) is small. Other members challenged this position, stating that since the police will not unquestioningly
- 162 - acknowledge its practice of racism, the Service should not be forced into doing so. Rather, the community should “go beyond and around” the racism issue to address other, non-contentious matters with the police. Although it would be ideal for the police to acknowledge this shortcoming, their resistance to doing so should not dissuade the community from working with the police.
Constable Guilbeault shared the feedback she received from the participating officers. While the majority of the officers found the dialogue to be an important beginning to opening the lines of communication between the police and minority youth, some reported having gained nothing that would alter the way they behave. Still, others called for more parental accountability and participation in future initiatives concerning minority youth and the role of police in the community. Furthermore, the police felt they were not given adequate time to respond to the comments raised during the dialogue; many felt that the facilitator could have done a better job in managing the flow of discussion. The point was made that the officers were allowed enough speaking time and in fact spoke more than the youth, who, for different reasons (e.g., fear of reprisal), refrained from speaking out.
Adirahman and Kelli noted that the youth were very well behaved and engaged with the dialogue process as much as could be expected. They indicated that some youth did not wish to speak, but others articulated their opinions well. According to Adirahman and Kelli, the issue of racism was not as prominent in the discussion as they had expected; it was raised but never addressed by the police. They both expressed that the youth left the event with new information and optimism; they were able to converse with the police officers face to face, but were doubtful that any change will result from the dialogue.
Deborah reflected on the initiative a police officer took to engage the youth during the intermission. This action represents progressive conduct worthy of emulating and supporting in police training.
Based on feedback shared by different members at the meeting, the Committee decided that the Activity Report should include the recommendation that, “the police acknowledge institutional racism and the need for police officers to be trained in active listening.” Once the report is completed it is to be given to the Committee for review. It is expected that the report will be presented to the Police Executive Services Team and shared with the dialogue participants beforehand. No date was scheduled for the next Steering Committee meeting; a future meeting is pending the completion of the Activity Report.
Meeting Adjourned
- 163 - Minutes # 11
Steering Committee Meeting Community Policing Project
September 6, 2007 ______
Present: Leslie McDiarmid, Manager, Community Services, SEOCHC Elizabeth Milan, Program Officer, Department of Canadian Heritage Stephanie Guilbeault, Diversity & Race Relations, Ottawa Police Service David Pepper, Director, Community Development, Ottawa Police Service Abdirizak Karod, Executive Director, Somali Centre for Family Services Mark Zarecki, Executive Director, Jewish Family Services of Ottawa Kelli Tonner, Programs Coordinator, Community Services, SEOCHC Karen Schwartz, Professor, Carleton University School of Social Work John Medeiros, Diversity & Race Relations, Ottawa Police Service Deborah Conners, Organization Consultant
Regrets: Michael Assivero, President, Trinidad/Tobago Association of Ottawa Evalt Lemours, Haitian Community, Groupe Anti-Délinquance En Poésie
Minutes: Sulaimon Giwa, Project Coordinator, Community Policing, SEOCHC ______
Sulaimon opened the meeting with a welcome to all, followed by the quick greetings of attendees. Leslie motioned for the approval of the meeting agenda and the minutes of the previous meeting; Elizabeth seconded the motions, and both items were approved by the Committee.
Sulaimon presented the initial report on the police/youth dialogue. Overall, the Committee felt that the report needed to be revised, in order to reflect the voice of the youth participants better, as they were considered missing from the present text; furthermore, they wanted to provide a framework for change based on a set of recommendations that emanated from the dialogue. They suggested that a separate recommendation report be devised to highlight the key outcomes of the dialogue from the youth’s perspective. It is anticipated that this report will be presented to the police executives for future policy and/or training use. Sulaimon agreed to rewrite the main report and to develop a three-paged recommendation report to be tabled to the Committee at the next meeting. Since the last meeting, both reports have been completed, taking into consideration the main focus of the dialogue: the youth.
- 164 - Sulaimon then raised the question of how the project will proceed now that Phase II has been completed. He proposed a presentation to the Ottawa Police Service (OPS) Executive Team as a possibility. This presentation will provide the police management team with an overview of the outcomes of the dialogue, highlighting areas for further policy and/or training opportunities. The suggestion received much support from the Committee and another member suggested that this presentation would be crucial for the OPS if it hopes to improve its relations with youth of colour. Underlying this suggestion, however, is the belief that the OPS must be willing to take on the responsibility for taking action, as part of its commitment to the principles of community policing and to achieving a better working relationship with youth of colour.
Sulaimon raised concerns regarding Phase III of the project. He questioned the appropriateness of community leaders going back into their communities to disseminate the information they gathered through the project, considering that some of them are no longer at the table. Similarly, concerns about the timing and execution of project activities were raised. Specifically, as the Project Coordinator was hired to work on a part-time basis, there were significant time gaps in the delivery of project activities. Such gaps could potentially make it difficult for community leaders to retain the important information they acquired (from the start of the project in 2006 to the present) and, during Phase III of the project in 2008, to share this information with members of their communities.
Sulaimon proposed that Phase III should involve a follow-up activity with the dialogue participants, in order to solicit feedback on the drafted reports and to present the drawings done during the dialogue process. As well, he suggested that an evaluation of the overall project be undertaken to ascertain if the project was effective in meeting its stated goals. For this activity, the services of Ms. Deborah Conners have been retained. The Committee supported these proposals, and Leslie suggested that Sulaimon write a project amendment letter for approval by the project’s funding partner, the Department of Canadian Heritage.
Finally, concerning the research component of the project, the Committee concluded that the research study is beyond the scope of the current project and is not feasible. First, the content of the research differs from the overall goals of the project, and if completed would not contribute to understanding the findings from the project activities. Second, while it is useful for the OPS to know if other police forces are contemplating or moving towards an integrated diversity training module, this is not what the project is about. If the OPS is committed to this research goal, funds should be allocated for its implementation and the research be carried out independently, exclusive of the current project.
A date and location for the next meeting was not identified. A meeting will be called once the follow-up activity with the dialogue participants has been completed as well as the project reports. Meeting Adjourned
- 165 - Minutes # 12
Steering Committee Meeting Community Policing Project
January 31, 2008 ______
Present: Leslie McDiarmid, Manager, Community Services, SEOCHC David Pepper, Director, Community Development, Ottawa Police Service Mark Zarecki, Executive Director, Jewish Family Services of Ottawa Michael Assivero, President, Trinidad/Tobago Association of Ottawa Karen Schwartz, Professor, Carleton University School of Social Work Deborah Conners, Organization Consultant
Regrets: John Medeiros, Diversity & Race Relations, Ottawa Police Service Abdirizak Karod, Executive Director, Somali Centre for Family Services Stephanie Guilbeault, Diversity & Race Relations, Ottawa Police Service Evalt Lemours, Haitian Community, Groupe Anti-Délinquance En Poésie
Minutes: Sulaimon Giwa, Project Coordinator, Community Policing, SEOCHC ______
At the start of the meeting, Leslie motioned for the approval of the meeting agenda and the minutes of the previous meeting; the motion was seconded by Mark, all agreed, with no amendments.
Leslie updated members of the Committee on the status of Elizabeth Milan, who had acted as the funding representative for the Department of Canadian Heritage and sat on the Project Steering Committee. She reported that Elizabeth has accepted a job opportunity with the Department of Indian and Northern Affairs and will no longer be the liaison between the project and its funding agency.
Elizabeth’s sudden departure affected the operations of the project, as the project was without a funding representative for some time. Furthermore, the Department provided no clear direction or information to the South-East Ottawa Community Health Centre regarding Elizabeth’s replacement. Leslie confirmed, however, that a new representative was recently appointed. She indicated her intention to make contact with the new representative before the project ends.
Sulaimon reported on and provided members of the Committee with a revised copy of the police/youth dialogue report as well as the recommendation report the Committee had requested during the September meeting. Both reports were
- 166 - reviewed and discussed extensively; parts of the reports were recommended for revision. Following a review of the reports, members of the Committee put forth ideas on how best to share the information gathered from the police/youth dialogue with the appropriate stakeholders, in order to maximize the project outcomes with regards to police/minority youth relations in Ottawa.
The Committee suggested that some members meet with Chief Vern White to apprise him of the project and its outcomes. They suggested that subsequent to this meeting, a presentation be delivered to members of the Ottawa Police Executive Services Team and the Ottawa Police Services Board.
In support of these goals, David provided the Committee with a list of the meeting dates of the OPS Executive Services Team and the Police Services Board. Sulaimon was asked to follow-up with David regarding meeting times and possible dates for meeting with the Chief of Police. Once the list of possible dates and times have been generated, this information will be communicated to the rest of the Committee, at which time the members will be asked to confirm their availability. The Committee recognizes that certain meeting dates and times are predetermined by the police; accordingly, they may be required to present at a time specified by the police.
A significant portion of the meeting time had been reserved for Ms. Conners to lead the evaluation phase of the project; however the Committee ran out of time, primarily because of the focus given to the dialogue and recommendation reports. As the Committee considers the evaluation phase a key component of the overall project, they decided that a new date be established solely for this activity. The date chosen is March 20, 2008.48
Meeting Adjourned
48 No minutes were generated for the March 20, 2008 Committee evaluation meeting.
- 167 -
______
Appendix VI: Phase I ______
- 168 -
- 169 - Racism and Racial Profiling Conference for Community Leaders, Allied Service Providers, and Youth of Colour
Friday, December 15, 2006 Ottawa
Hosted by: South-East Ottawa Community Health Centre (SEOCHC)
In partnership with: Ottawa Police Service, Somali Centre for Family Services, Jewish Family Services of Ottawa, and Carleton University School of Social Work
Program (All day in the Fairlea Room)
09:00- Opening Leslie McDiarmid, Manager, 09:20 Ceremony/Introduction Community Services
Keynote Speakers:
10 min. Opening Addresses Ottawa Police Service Chief, Vince Bevan
The Honourable David McGuinty, Liberal MP & Paul Dewar, NDP MP
Program Outline Sulaimon Giwa, Project Coordinator
09:20- Public Panel Discussion on Speakers: 11:20 Racism and Racial Profiling
- How pervasive is the problem? Dr. Scot Wortley, Associate Professor,
Department of Criminology, U of T - Why does it occur?
Mr. Neil Edwards, Director, - Can it be stopped and how? Investigation and Mediation,
- How can the police be made Ontario Human Rights Commission
more accountable?
Moderators:
- Do public dialogues similar to
this improve or harm race Adrian Harewood, CBC Radio
relations among police and Sarah Onyango, Community Activist minority communities?
11:20- Break Break 11:30
Workshop I: Speaker: 11:30- 12:30 Knowing Your Rights & Margaret Parsons, Executive Director, Responsibilities African Canadian Legal Clinic
- 170 - 12:30- Lunch / Presentation and Poetry by Lunch / Presentation and Poetry by 01:30 Evalt Lemours, ADEP Evalt Lemours, ADEP
Workshop II:
01:30- Looking at Institutional Change: Speakers (each have 30 minutes): 03:00 Complaints Process & Procedures
30 min. Scadding Court, CEAPC Project Kevin Lee, Director
Ottawa Police Service Professional 30 min. Sergeant Mike Laviolette Standards Section
30 min. Centre for Conflict Education & Research (CCER), Carleton Peter Sterne, Executive Director University
03:00- Break Break 03:15
Workshop III:
Facilitator: Inclusive Consultation & Advocacy
Peter Sterne, Executive Director, CCER 03:15- Mediation: Making the 04:30 Process Accessible Break into groups of six. For about 20 minutes, deliberate on the presentations from Workshop II. Note where you feel the OPS is moving in the right direction, where it is not. As a group, propose recommendations for change, to be shared with the larger group. Emerging themes will be recorded.
04:30- Closing Remarks Sulaimon Giwa, Project Coordinator 04:40
04:45- Evaluation Questionnaire Sulaimon Giwa, Project Coordinator 05:00
The Community Policing—A Shared Responsibility project gratefully acknowledges the financial support of the Department of Canadian Heritage, Multiculturalism Program
- 171 - Community Policing—A Shared Responsibility Conference / Workshops Evaluation Questionnaire ______
Instructions:
Thank you for participating in today’s event! Please help us to plan future conferences, workshops, and presentations for the Community Policing—A Shared Responsibility project by completing this Evaluation Questionnaire. For each of the following questions below, mark the correct category, rate aspects of the workshops on a six-point scale, and fill-in responses that best reflect your view and overall conference experience. Return completed questionnaires to the Project Coordinator before exiting the room. ______
You are:
[ ] female [ ] male
Which most fits your role?
[ ] community leader [ ] allied service provider [ ] other
With which community do you have this role?
[ ] Somalian
[ ] Haitian
[ ] Trinidadian/Tobago
[ ] Jamaican
[ ] Other, please specify: ______
As a minority community leader or allied service provider, will you help this project later by taking on and disseminating conference-related information to members of your community?
[ ] yes [ ] no [ ] may be interested, but need more information
If yes or may be interested, please complete:
Name: ______Postal address / Phone #: ______
Organization (if any) ______Email: ______
- 172 - The objectives of this conference and subsequent workshops were clearly laid out and met my expectations.
1 2 3 4 5 N/A strongly somewhat neither agree somewhat strongly disagree disagree nor disagree agree agree
I will be able to apply what I learned in the workshops to work effectively with members of my community and/or members of the multicultural communities.
1 2 3 4 5 N/A strongly somewhat neither agree somewhat strongly disagree disagree nor disagree agree agree
Do you believe that police need more training for their work with visible minorities?
[ ] yes
[ ] no
[ ] don’t know
If yes, what training should they receive? And if no, please explain.
In your opinion, what can multicultural community members do to improve relations with the Ottawa Police Service and minimize possibilities of discrimination?
In your role as community leader or service provider, how well-informed are members of your community/clients about their rights and responsibilities?
1 2 3 4 5 N/A very poorly poorly moderately somewhat very well informed informed informed informed informed
- 173 - What should be done to help members of your community better understand their rights and responsibilities?
The workshop on rights and responsibilities was a good way for me to learn this content.
1 2 3 4 5 N/A strongly somewhat neither agree somewhat strongly disagree disagree nor disagree agree agree
Before I came to this meeting, I was well informed about the OPS complaint process.
1 2 3 4 5 N/A strongly somewhat neither agree somewhat strongly disagree disagree nor disagree agree agree
Now, I have enough information to help community members access the Ottawa Police Service Complaint Process competently.
1 2 3 4 5 N/A strongly somewhat neither agree somewhat strongly disagree disagree nor disagree agree agree
After this meeting, I would feel confident filing a complaint with the Ottawa Police Service, personally or on behalf of a community member.
1 2 3 4 5 N/A strongly somewhat neither agree somewhat strongly disagree disagree nor disagree agree agree
As community leader or service provider, do you believe that members of your community have confidence in the fairness of the Ottawa Police Services complaint process?
1 2 3 4 5 N/A have very little have little have some have a lot of have very much confidence confidence confidence confidence confidence
- 174 - Does the complaint process need improvements?
[ ] yes
[ ] no
[ ] don’t know
If yes, what are the three most important things that the OPS could do to make sure that its complaints process is more accessible?
How can members of the multicultural community be involved in improving the complaints process?
What is the best way to help people of your community understand the complaint process and how to use it?
Overall, the presentation on the OPS complaint process stimulated my learning and its content is relevant to my job/role in the community.
1 2 3 4 5 N/A strongly somewhat neither agree somewhat strongly disagree disagree nor disagree agree agree
What improvements would you recommend for this event and workshops?
What is the most and least valuable about this event and workshops?
Thank you!
- 175 -
______
Appendix VII: Phase II (Part A) ______
- 176 -
*** A copy of this flyer also appeared in The Spectrum, Ottawa’s premier Black newspaper for the African and Caribbean communities.
- 177 - Workshop for Community Members Presented by the Centre for Conflict Education and Research (CCER) at Carleton University
THE USE OF MEDIATION IN PUBLIC COMPLAINTS AGAINST THE POLICE
South-East Ottawa Community Health Centre 600-1355 rue Bank Street April 13, 2007
9:00 Introductions (Sulaimon Giwa, Project Coordinator, Community Policing)
9:05 Sgt. Mike Laviolette – OPS Professional Standards
9:30 Overview of CCER and the Workshop (Dr. Cheryl Picard, Director CCER) Objectives: 1. To introduce the process of mediation used in OPS civilian complaints; 2. To clarify the role CCER plays in the process; 3. To discuss experiences in civilian complaint mediation, particularly around culture; 4. To provide an opportunity for participants to understand mediation more deeply through skills exercises.
Overview of CCER’ Involvement in OPS Mediation Pilot Project (Helen Taylor, Program Coordinator, CCER) What CCER Does When a Referral for Mediation from OPS is made. Contact Mediators Timelines Reporting the outcome of mediation to Ottawa Police Professional Standards
What is Mediation and How Does it Work? (Cheryl Picard, Director, CCER) The Mediation Process CCER’s Roster of Mediators Agreement to Mediate Memorandum of Understanding
10:45 Break
11:15 When People from Different Cultural groups are involved in mediation (Rena Ramkay, CCER Mediator) Role of emotion Individualist / Collective styles Language and Use of Interpreters Power
Group Activity: Understanding the Use of Mediation
Discussion / Questions / Concerns / Suggestions
1:00 End of workshop
- 178 - Community Policing—A Shared Responsibility Mediation Workshop Evaluation Questionnaire
1. Before I came to this meeting, I was well informed about the Ottawa Police Service Complaints Process.
1 2 3 4 5 N/A strongly somewhat neither agree somewhat strongly disagree disagree nor disagree agree agree
2. Now, I have enough information to help community members access the Ottawa Police Service Complaints Process competently.
1 2 3 4 5 N/A strongly somewhat neither agree somewhat strongly disagree disagree nor disagree agree agree
3. After this meeting, I would feel confident filing a complaint with the Ottawa Police Service, personally or on behalf of a community member.
1 2 3 4 5 N/A strongly somewhat neither agree somewhat strongly disagree disagree nor disagree agree agree
4. Overall, the workshop met your expectation.
1 2 3 4 5 N/A strongly somewhat neither agree somewhat strongly disagree disagree nor disagree agree agree
5. After this workshop, what concern(s) do you have about the complaints process (both investigation and mediation)? What would you recommend as a possible solution?
6. Other comments (e.g., comments on presentations, discussions and workshop format)?
Thank you for your time! For additional space, please use the back of the sheet.
- 179 -
______
Appendix VIII: Phase II (Part B) ______
- 180 -
- 181 - OPS/Somali and Caribbean Youth Dialogue Pre-Dialogue/Meeting Agenda for Police Participants’
Welcome
Introductions (Name & Unit)
Background on project
Goal of May 31 joint meeting and agenda review
Ground rules
Round Robin: Ask For Their Thoughts On The Goal Of The Dialogue
C – Concerns
B - Best possible outcome
R - Your view of your role
Brainstorm
We want to create some scenarios for police training and to do our prep work would like to know where you have encountered youth of colour in your work. For example, traffic and school situations, hanging out on the street corner, at the airport, domestic violence calls and etc.
Make flip charted list
Final Round – Popcorn Style
This will require discipline
You are being asked to model a professional approach to each other and the youth
We will be focussed on what OPS can do better in approaching youth. What could we do that would keep us on track when it comes up that the youth could do better?
Closure
Any last questions Is everybody on board with the goal? Thank you!
- 182 - OPS/Somali and Caribbean Youth Dialogue Pre-Dialogue/Meeting Agenda for Youth Participants’
Welcome
Introductions (Name)
Background on project
Goal of May 31 joint meeting and agenda review
Ground rules
Round Robin: Ask For Their Thoughts On The Goal Of The Dialogue
C – Concerns
B - Best possible outcome
R - Your view of your role
Brainstorm We want to create some scenarios for police training and to do our prep work would like to know where you have encountered police. For example, traffic and school situations, hanging out on the street corner, at the airport, domestic violence calls, etc.
Make flip charted list
Final Round – Popcorn Style
Any concerns?
Closure
Any last questions
Is everybody on board with the goal?
Thank you!
- 183 - Police/Youth Dialogue Agenda May 31, 2007 Welcome Background on project
Goal of May 31 joint meeting and agenda review
Introductions
Ground rules
What We Would Like to See Happening A relationship of trust between youth and police would mean that both officers and youth would achieve their needs for respect, appreciation, and security. What would a future relationship of trust look like?
Individual Exercise: Record on your handout the answers to the following questions: In a relationship of trust, what would the police do differently? What would the youth do differently?
Group Exercise: Report your answers back to the group.
What Goes Wrong There is a lot of information in this room about what could be done differently to meet the mutual needs of both officers and youth. Why do we not do these things now? What do you think goes wrong? We all know that our lives would be better if we acted in ways that increase the possibility of achieving our needs for safety, appreciation and respect, yet we continue to act in ways that make it less likely.
Individual Exercise: Write down some of the things that go wrong in encounters between the police and youth, and why they do.
Group Exercise: Report back to the group.
Group Dialogue: What do you notice about what goes wrong and why?
Personal Stories—Popcorn Style Offer the youth the opportunity to share their own stories of experience with the police in their own word; it could be an interaction that did not go well, or one that went very well.
The group reflect on how these stories could help make police training better.
Closure Last round—share one word about how you are right now OR something that you learned tonight OR anything else that you wish to say before we finish. Less than a minute each. Thank you!
- 184 - Community Policing—A Shared Responsibility Dialogue with Youth of Colour and the Ottawa Police Service
Are you a youth or with the police? ( ) Youth ( ) Police
YOUTH ACTIONS POLICE ACTIONS What would the youth be doing What would the police officers be doing differently in a relationship of trust with differently in a relationship of trust with the police? the youth? 1. 1.
2. 2.
3. 3.
What goes wrong? Why?
- 185 - Community Policing—A Shared Responsibility
EVALUATION FORM & RESULTS
Strongly Strongly Disagree Agree
Participating in today’s session was a good use of my 1 2 3 4 5 time
We now have suggestions for what police could do to 1 2 3 4 5 support a better relationship with the youth
We now have examples of what sometimes goes 1 2 3 4 5 wrong in police and youth interactions
I think that the work we have done could support 1 2 3 4 5 better police training
The facilitator provided good support for the process 1 2 3 4 5
Other Comments: Evaluation Results
Evaluation forms were received from 19 participants. The numbers of responses ranging from 1 to 5 are noted below for each evaluation statement.
Strongly Strongly Disagree Agree
1 2 3 4 5
Participating in today’s session was a good use of my 2 0 5 9 3 time
We now have suggestions for what police could do to 5 3 5 5 1 support a better relationship with the youth
We now have examples of what sometimes goes 3 2 8 5 1 wrong in police and youth interactions
I think that the work we have done could support 5 5 2 5 2 better police training
The facilitator provided good support for the process 2 2 6 5 4
Other Comments: There were no other comments.
- 186 -
______
Appendix IX: Phase III ______
- 187 - Community Policing—A Shared Responsibility Project Steering Committee Evaluation Questionnaire
The following are the goal statements of the Community Policing—A Shared Responsibility project. Please provide your assessment of the impact made by the project on each of the goals.
(N = 7)
Did Not Partial Excellent Achieve Achievement Progress 1 2 3 4 5
Members of multicultural communities are better equipped to effectively deal with complaints and concerns about police services, as a result of the increased capacity of organizations mandated to serve them relative to police policies and procedures.
Allied service providers are better equipped to assist and support members of multicultural communities to understand and file complaints to Ottawa Police Service.
Stronger relationships and more frequent partnerships between the multicultural communities and Ottawa Police Service
1. What contributed to the successes of the project activities?
2. What did we learn about what worked and what did not work?
3. What difference did it make that we did this work?
4. What could we have done differently?
5. What recommendations can we propose for future initiatives?
6. Other comments? (Please feel free to use back of sheet)
I am a ( ) police representative OR a ( ) community representative.
- 188 -
______
Appendix X: Project Media Coverage ______
- 189 -
- 190 -
- 191 -
- 192 -
______
About the Author ______
Sulaimon Abiodun Olawale Giwa is a Ph.D. student in the School of Social Work, Atkinson Faculty of Liberal and Professional Studies at York University, Toronto, Ontario. He holds a Master’s degree in Social Work, an Honours Bachelor degree in Criminology and Criminal Justice from Carleton University, Ottawa, Ontario, and a College Diploma in Police Education from Sir Sandford Fleming College, Peterborough, Ontario. Giwa has over five years experience in social services, policing, and race relations. His research interests encompass the areas of anti-racism and oppression, gay, lesbian, bisexual, and trans issues, feminism, and the criminal justice system. Giwa has received several awards including a Roderick S.J. Rooney, F.C.A. Memorial Scholarship, a Lambda Foundation Scholarship Award for Excellence in Gay and Lesbian Studies, and an A. Davidson Dunton Scholarship. Giwa is currently a Research Officer in the Department of Correctional Service of Canada, Research Branch.
- 193 -